
Class _JIXiil_ 

Book J^iX 

Copyright N° 



COPyRIGHT DEPOSm 



J^(y^M/S^ (A^^ uJjlr-y^r''y'fYiiiit^'^ ^ 







UBSARY of OONaKESsl 
iwo Copies rifcCfciivjJ 1 

APi^ 2B 1908 



'Y 3. I 



X. 



Copyright 1908 by The Prnn Publishing Company 



Introduction 

The "best ways of doing things" are often contrib- 
uted to periodicals by practical men and women who 
have worked out the problems in their own experience. 
It is, however, difficult to preserve them in convenient 
form for reference. This book is a systematic compila- 
tion from reliable sources of receipts and remedies that 
will be invaluable to the mother and housekeeper, and 
also to any man or woman who wishes to maintain per- 
sonal appearance, health and comfort, in the most effect- 
ive and economical way. Every suggestion is based 
upon competent knowledge, and has been tested by ex- 
perience. 

The book covers such general subjects as : Diseases 
and Disorders, Housekeeping in all its phases, except 
cooking, Personal Health and Beauty, Hygiene, Cloth- 
ing, including washing, bleaching, dyeing, removing 
stains. Accidents and how to treat them. Care of Chil- 
dren, etc. 

For convenience in reference, however, the book has 
been arranged alphabetically with frequent cross-refer- 
ences. Thus remedies for breaking up a Cold are given 
on pages 62, d^, 64, 65, and at the end of that section a 

3 



4 INTRODUCTION 

reference is also made to Coughs^ which will be found 
on page 73. Many remedies are often given under one 
general heading, as for instance, those under Face, page 
102, and Hair, page 137. This convenient arrangement 
of the book has made an Index unnecessary. 



Receipts and Remedies 



Abrasions. — i. An abrasion of the skin should be 
washed and then covered with pliable collodion, which 
forms an artificial skin over the spot. Take of collodion, 
one ounce; castor oil and soft turpentine, each eight grains. 
Apply this with a camel's hair brush, putting on two or 
three times. The coats dry and form a protective cover- 
ing over the sore. 

2. A healing lotion for abrasions, scratches and little 
cuts is made of : Spirits of camphor, one ounce ; 
glycerine, one-fourth drachm ; borax, one-eighth drachm ; 
carbolic acid, five grains. Apply to the sore twice a day. 

3. If much skin has been lost and the part bleeds 
freely, a paste of glycerine and boric acid, or one of 
glycerine and subnitrate of bismuth may be laid on and 
covered with collodion. 

Acid Burns. — Strong acids such as sulphuric, nitric 
and muriatic applied to, or coming in contact with the 
skin cause great pain and destroy the tissues. Dilute 
ammonia, chalk, carbonate of magnesia or some other 
alkali should be applied at once to neutralize the acid. 
After an hour or so the following should be applied on 

5 



6 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

soft cloth : Olive oil, two ounces ; lime water, two 
ounces ; carbolic acid, fifteen drops. Wet soft cloth with 
this mixture and apply, changing two or three times a 
day, if necessary. Linseed oil may be used instead of 
olive. For burns from carbolic acid, apply olive oil 
alone. 

Acne. — One who is affected with acne should keep 
the skin perfectly clean. At night the face should be 
washed in hot water and steamed well. Then a little eau de 
cologne should be thoroughly rubbed into the skin. Tea 
and coffee should be avoided, cocoa and warm milk being 
used instead. Pastry, cheese, sauces and highly seasoned 
foods should not be eaten ; but fruit, tomatoes, and well- 
cooked green vegetables should be eaten freely. See 
Pimples. 

Air. — I. A simple, safe and inexpensive way to ob- 
tain pure air in a room. A board four inches wide and 
as long as the width of the lower sash is fitted so perfectly 
to the bottom of the lower sash as to be a part of it. 
Thus, through the opening between the upper and lower 
windows at the center no draught is felt, and there is a 
constant current of outgoing and incoming air day and 
night. 

2. To purify the air in a sick room there is nothing 
better than the burning of brown paper, previously 
soaked in saltpeter water and dried, with a handful of lav- 
ender leaves laid upon it. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 7 

Alabaster Ornaments. — i. To clean such orna- 
ments wash them in strong white soap-suds to which has 
been added one tablespoonful of washing soda or of 
borax for each gallon of suds. Rinse in clear water. 

2. Another way to clean them is to immerse them for 
some time in milk of lime made of slaked lime and water, 
then wash them in clean water and when dry dust them 
with a little French chalk. 

"Aniline Stains may be removed from the hands by 
washing with strong alcohol, or by washing with a little 
bleaching-powder, then with alcohol. 

A teaspoonful of permanganate of potash slightly 
moistened in the palm of the hand, thoroughly rubbed 
into the hands and washed, then using bisulphite of soda 
freely to remove it, removes with it all stains made by 
inks, blackings, etc., leaving the hands soft and white, 
without the slightest injury to the skin. 

Antiseptics. — i. For general use carbolic acid is 
one of the best antiseptics that can be used. Dissolve 
one teaspoonful in a pint of water. This solution can be 
used for washing cuts, wounds, bruises, sores and affec- 
tions of the skin. 

2. An excellent antiseptic lotion for cuts, wounds and 
sores is made of forty parts of listerine or glycerine to one 
part of carbolic acid. 

3. A boracic acid solution is also good. 

4. Bichloride of mercury (corrosive sublimate) is an 



8 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

efficient antiseptic, but one that must be used with 
caution, as it is a deadly poison if taken internally. 
Seven and a half grains dissolved in a quart of water 
makes a lotion of proper strength. Use the same as 
carbolic acid. 

5. Another excellent lotion for sores, wounds, bruises, 
inflammation and skin diseases is : Pure carbolic acid, 
one ounce ; powdered camphor, two ounces ; absolute 
alcohol, two and a half drachms. Saturate absorbent 
cotton with this lotion and apply to the part, covering it 
with a bandage. 

6. And still another one is : Spirits of camphor, one 
ounce ; glycerine, one-fourth drachm ; borax, one-eighth 
drachm ; carbolic acid, five grains. Apply this twice a day. 

7. Boro-Glycerine is very useful for washing cuts, 
wounds, burns, bruises and irritations of the skin. It is 
made by adding to ten parts of pure glycerine, five parts 
by weight of pure powdered boric, warm, and stir until 
the boric is dissolved. 

Ants. — I. A remedy that is effectual in one case is 
ineffective in another. Among the best means of exter- 
minating the pests are the following : 

2. Sprinkle the infested places with oil of penny- 
royal ; or strew fresh pennyroyal about the places. The 
strong odor will drive them away. 

3. Sometimes the odor of tar or of leaves of worm- 
wood will drive ants away. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 9 

4. Green walnuts scattered about are sometimes 
effectual. They should be cracked open. 

5. Put into the closet or cupboard a pan containing a 
few live coals. Sprinkle over the coals about two table- 
spoonfuls of powdered gum camphor, close the door and 
allow the fumes of the camphor to saturate the closet. 
Two or three of such fumigations may be necessary be- 
fore all the ants are exterminated. 

6. Ants may be trapped in either of the following 
two ways : Cover plates with a thin coat of lard, and set 
them in the places infested by the insects. Place little 
sticks or toothpicks at the side on which the ants can 
mount to the plates. When the plates are filled with the 
insects drop them into a pan of boiling water. Or, wet 
sponges with sweetened water and place them about. 
When they are full of ants drop them into hot 
water. 

7. Powdered cloves and powdered borax are said to 
drive ants away. A few drops of oil of cedar, on bits 
of cotton, is sometimes effective. 

8. Whenever possible ants should be traced to their 
home or nest. When the nest is found, if it is in the 
house, saturate it with kerosene oil or with boiling water. 
If the nest is in the ground press a long sharp-pointed stick 
into the nest, remove quickly, and pour about two ounces 
of disulphide of carbon into the hole; close at once by 
pressing the foot on the hole. Proceed in this manner 
until six holes are made, filled and closed. The fumes 



lo RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

of the disulphide of carbon will penetrate to every part 
of the nest, destroying all life. One must be careful not 
to breathe the fumes of the chemical, and not to have 
light nor fire near when using it. A lighted cigar or 
pipe may cause an explosion. Kerosene may sometimes 
be used instead of the disulphide. 

lo. When ants are troublesome about the grounds, 
nearly fill small bottles with water, and pour a little sweet 
oil on top of the water. Sink the bottles in the earth in the 
infested locality. The ants will enter the bottles in 
search of the oil and be drowned. 

Some benefit may be derived from the application of 
coal oil, borax, or dried tansy leaves. 

Arms. — I. When the arms are pink and it is desired 
to have the skin soft and of a pleasing white appearance, 
the following treatment is suggested : Bathe the arms 
every morning in very hot rice water, in which a tea- 
spoonful of borax and two tablespoonfuls of pulverized 
starch have been dissolved. At night massage with 
cream. When going out to a party mix equal parts of 
lemon juice and glycerine. Dab this gently over the 
arms, wipe almost dry, then powder with starch, after 
which rub the arms all over with lump magnesia, which 
is also good for pimples and marks on the skin. 

2. Bathing the arms with a fine lather of soap, twice 
a day, then drying them and rubbing them vigorously 
improves their condition and appearance. Rubbing 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES ii 

with a soft chamois leather makes the skin smooth and 
soft and also cures eruptive disorders, pimples, etc. 

3. To reduce the flesh of the arms massage with a 
mixture of Castile soap, iodide of potassium, alcohol and 
essence of lemon. Have each arm massaged twenty 
minutes. After the massage wash the arms with tepid 
water, then rub them hard with a crash glove and this 
mixture : Borax, two drachms ; potassium carbonate, 
forty grains ; rose water, fifteen ounces ; cologne water, 
four drachms ; talcum powder, one and a half ounces ; 
glycerine, five drachms ; tincture of benzoin, three 
drachms. This diminishes the flesh and makes the arms 
smooth and white. 

Barrels. — i. It is sometimes necessary to cleanse 
barrels and other wooden vessels so that they can be 
used to hold cider, wine or food. A solution of sal 
soda should be used. The barrel should be filled half 
full of water, and a solution of about two pounds of the 
soda in a gallon of water poured in and the liquids 
thoroughly mixed by shaking the barrel which should 
then be filled to the bung with water and allowed to re- 
main twelve hours or longer, then the barrel should be 
emptied, filled with pure water, left a {q^n' hours, and 
then thoroughly rinsed, when it will be ready for use. 

2. Another way to cleanse a barrel is to put a few 
pounds of unslaked hme into it, add water and cover. 
After a few hours add more water and roll the barrel. 
Rinse with clean water. 



12 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

Bath. — I. Hints ofi bathing. If you want good 
health, a clear complexion and a well-toned system, take 
a cold water hand bath every day in the year. The 
water should be of a temperature to suit the body. If 
you are of a vigorous constitution, or wish to be, have 
the water cold — that is, if you have sufficient vitality for 
the reaction; if not, begin with luke-warm water and 
have it less warm each day as the body gradually be- 
comes accustomed to it. 

Rub the body vigorously while bathing. Too vigor- 
ous rubbing after the bath is not wise, as it causes one 
to perspire and then to become chilled after dressing. 
Put a handful of salt (sea salt is preferable) in the basin 
of water. It will make you less liable to catch cold, and 
is a good tonic for the skin. 

Do not take a tub bath of hot water more than once 
a week, not once a month if you are of nervous tempera- 
ment. The fibrous nerves terminate at every part of the 
body and thereby conduct the vital force off whenever 
they are thus excited. Magnetism is wasted and the 
ends of the nerves are thrown into a state of excitement. 

Always end a hot water bath by a quick rinsing of the 
body with cold water. One should feel neither too 
chilled nor too warm when leaving the bath, especially 
if one must go directly into the open air. 

2. The cold water towel bath. This bath, if taken 
every morning immediately after getting out of bed, 
says a doctor, will produce great vigor and strength, if 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 13 

it is done with sufficient vim to prevent chilling. It 
should be done in this manner. On getting out of bed 
remove your night clothes, first wash your neck and face 
thoroughly with cold water, then take a large rough 
towel, wring it loosely out of cold water, and with both 
hands rub the breast, sides, abdomen and arms hard ; 
again dipping the towel into the water, take it by the 
edge and throw it over the head in such a way as to 
spread it out on the back ; then reaching back with both 
hands, quickly seesaw it over the back down over the 
hips, and then reversing it over the shoulders, seesaw it 
down the back ; again wringing it out of the water, rub 
one leg, again wet it and rub the other leg. Wipe 
quickly and vigorously with a rough dry towel, and in 
the same order and way that the wet towel was used. 
The whole operation should not take over two or three 
minutes. Persons of ordinary health and resolution can 
take this morning cold water bath without chilling and 
when through with it be warm and feel fifty per cent. 
better. 

3. A simple method of 7naking a beauty bath is to boil 
two pounds of bran in a little water for three hours, then 
strain off the bran and add the liquor to the bath. This 
not only softens the water but also the skin, and costs 
only a cent or two. To scent this bath add a few drops 
of oil of lavender. 

4. Another way to prepare a beauty bath is to sew 
a pound of oatmeal into a muslin bag, and, after steep- 



14 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

ing this in boiling water for a few minutes, to throw both 
water and bag into the bath, together with half a teacup- 
ful of orange-flower water. 

5. Bath- Bags. The use of bran or corn-meal bags 
in the bath is very good for the skin. Cheese-cloth is 
the best material of which to make the bags, which may 
be any size desired. A bag should not be used more 
than twice, for it soon sours. 

An excellent bath-bag is made as follows : Make a 
bag from cheese-cloth and put a running-string in it. 
Save all pieces of toilet soap, and when perfectly dry 
pound to a powder. Mix four tablespoon fuls of borax 
with four ounces of the soap, and stir this mixture into 
four quarts of bran. When about to take a bath put 
half a pint of this mixture in the bag and tie firmly. 
Use the bag as a wash -cloth. It will soften and whiten 
the skin. 

6. A refreshing bath to be taken when one is fatigued 
or for overstrung nerves is made by simply mixing an 
ounce of ammonia in the water; but this bath should 
not be frequently used as ammonia, for all its tonic and 
refreshing powers, is not conducive to the beauty of the 
skin. Immediately after a bath let the body be sharply 
rubbed with a soft towel and then powdered all over with 
a little plain rice or starch powder. A ball of medicated 
wool, costing about six cents, can be used in place of the 
large and expensive powder puff. 

7. To prevent taking cold^ warm baths should be. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 15 

taken just before retiring. If taken during the day, 
exercise for a few moments vigorously. The cold bath 
in the morning is an invigorator for the entire day. 

Bath-tubs and Wash-bo'wls. — i. Porcelain bath- 
tubs can be kept free from stains and discolorations by 
using borax while bathing. When cleansing the tub, 
wring a cloth out of strong suds, rub soap over this and 
sprinkle with borax. 

2. When the enafnel of the bath is dirty and dis- 
colored, take some paraffin, dip a piece of flannel in it, 
and keep rubbing the bath gently until the dirt is re- 
moved ; then wash with warm water and soap. 

3. To remove dirt from bath-tubs and wash-bowls, 
dampen a woolen cloth with gasoline and rub over the 
places. The dirt will instantly disappear, leaving the 
surface clean and polished. 

4. Stains on bath-tubs^ marble basins^ etc. that other 
cleansers will not touch may be removed with muriatic 
acid. The acid should be applied with a small rag upon 
the end of a stick ; the stain disappears instantaneously. 
The vessel should, then be immediately scrubbed with soap 
and water and flushed to remove all traces of the acid. 
Care should be used to prevent the acid from dropping 
upon the plumbing attachments, as it will eff'ace silver- 
plating and the like ; and it should not be allowed to 
touch either hands or clothes. 

5. The pipes leading from sinks, bath-tubs and lava- 



i6 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

tories should be thoroughly flushed every day and 
cleansed with hot soda water or dissolved copperas 
about once a week. The soda solution (sal soda and 
water) should be boiling hot. It cleans out all greasy 
matter and prevents unpleasant odors. 

Bedbugs. — i. Naphtha is a most effective extermi- 
nator of bedbugs. It may be sprayed into the cracks in 
the walls and woodwork and all places where the bugs 
are. A spring-bottom oil can should be used and all the 
places saturated with the naphtha. Also wet the ledges 
over- the doors and windows, the top of picture mould- 
ing, and every crack in the bed, which should previously 
have been taken apart, the mattress, pillows, etc. Every 
place where the bugs are hidden should be saturated 
with the naphtha. There should be no fire nor light in 
the room as the naphtha is very inflammable, and the win- 
dows must be kept open for several hours that all the gas 
may escape. 

2. The following preparation is a most excellent one 
to use in getting rid of bedbugs. The bottle should be 
plainly marked and also labeled ''Poison." Mix to- 
gether in a large bottle half an ounce of corrosive subli- 
mate, half an ounce of powdered camphor, half a pint of 
wood alcohol and half a pint of turpentine. Apply this 
to every spot, cracks, grooves, etc., with a brush. 

3. Corrosive sublimate, one-fourth ounce ; spirits of 
turpentine, one-half pint ; dissolved and applied with a 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 17 

brush to every crevice, is also death to bedbugs. Repeat 
the process two or three times, two weeks apart. 

4. Another remedy is oil of cedar. Dip a feather or 
small brush in the oil and brush over the cracks and 
crevices. Shut up the room for several days. 

5. Fumigating with sulphur is a very effective method 
of ridding a room of bedbugs. The furniture should be 
taken out of the room, the windows and doors closed, 
and about an ounce of powdered sulphur on a pan of hot 
coals placed in the middle of the floor. After the 
sulphur has burned out, paint all the cracks with a strong 
solution of corrosive sublimate and wood alcohol, and 
treat the furniture to the same before replacing it. Brass 
must be greased or otherwise protected, as the sulphur 
fumes will blacken it. 

Bites. — I. To relieve the irritation and pain caused 
by the bites of insects, ants, spiders, bedbugs, mosquitoes, 
etc., use: Carbolic acid, one-half drachm; glycerine, 
three drachms; rose-water, sufficient to make three 
ounces. Mix, and apply freely to the bite or sting. 

2. Mosquito bites are often rank poison, especially 
upon the delicate flesh of children. Discomfort is 
obviated by rubbing the exposed parts with a mixture of 
one part of oil of sassafras with five parts of proof 
alcohol. Every three or four hours a slight rubbing must 
be repeated. 

3. The bites of insects and spiders, unless of an un- 



i8 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

usually virulent type, can be relieved by an immediate 
application of a paste of baking soda and water. Salt 
will answer in most cases, and listerine is good. Should 
the bitten part seem angry and swollen diluted carbolic 
acid will antidote the poison. 

4. The irritation that is caused in some persons by 
mosquito bites may be relieved by the application of 
ipecacuanha, either the vinum or the powdered root, 
made into a paste with water or vinegar, being used. 

5. Weak ammonia water, oil, salt water or iodine are 
other remedies for insect bites. 

6. Mad dog or snake bite. Tie a cord tightly 
above the wound around the member bitten, so as to cut 
off the flow of blood to the heart. Suck the wound and 
make it larger with a clean sharp knife so as to cause the 
blood to flow freely, then pour in the wound a strong 
solution of permanganate of potash, one ounce to a pint 
of water, or strong spirits of ammonia. Whiskey, 
brandy or other stimulant should be given freely. After 
a while the cord should be loosened a little. 

7. A liniment to apply to snake and other bites is 
made of : Oil of turpentine, one pint ; camphor, three 
ounces; sulphuric acid, four drachms; nitric acid, four 
drachms ; olive oil, four drachms. Mix the ingredients, 
and apply freely to the bite and swollen parts. 

8. No fir drug treatment for snake bite is as follows : 
Patient should be kept warm if necessary by placing feet 
in hot water and wrapping up with warm blankets. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 19 

Every means should be adopted to cleanse the system of 
all foreign matter. Colon flushing treatment, using from 
three to four quarts of water, should be given very 
thoroughly. Patient should drink several quarts of hot 
water. If numb, he should exercise or be given massage 
and artificial respiration should be employed if it seems 
necessary. As a constitutional stimulant, alternate hot 
and cold applications to the spine, in quick succession, 
are more effective than whiskey and not so injurious. 
Pure air to breathe is imperative, and no food should be 
allowed until all symptoms have disappeared. If the 
bite is a very severe one and not treated at once, per- 
haps nothing will be of avail, but the above treatment will 
cure if anything will. 

Black mousseline de sole and other thin black 
materials may be restored to stiffness by laying over the 
goods a cloth previously dipped in gum arable water. 
Cover the ironing board with old black cloth and use 
black to dip into the gum water. Pin the cloth to be 
stiffened smoothly to the board, lay over it the piece 
dipped in the gum water and a dry cloth over that. 
Iron with a hot iron ; and the goods will be nicely re- 
stored to stiffness. 

Black Eye. — i. To prevent an eye from becoming 
discolored from a blow or bruise mix well together the 
following ingredients : Ammonium chloride, one-half 
ounce , tincture of arnica, one ounce ; dilute acetic acid, 



20 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

two and a half ounces ; water, two and a half ounces. 
Apply at once after the blow has been received, and 
continuously afterward, and no discoloration will ap- 
pear. 

2. An effective poultice for a discolored or bruised 
eye is made of bread and vinegar. Soak small pieces of 
bread in a little cold vinegar and then beat it with a 
small stick to a smooth paste. Apply as a poultice, ty- 
ing it on well. 

Blackheads. — i. Blackheads are a most unsightly 
complexion ailment. They are formed by the accumula- 
tion of dirt and the solid matter of the perspiration in 
the pores of the skin. A daily bath in warm water con- 
taining borax helps to prevent them by cleaning out the 
pores. Bathe the face also at night, using only pure 
white soap • dry without friction and apply a little cold 
cream containing borax. 

2. Vapor baths and friction and the use of a mild 
lotion removes blackheads and prevents their re-forming. 
Steam the face, then gently press the blackheads out and 
rub in a sulphur ointment or, in mild cases, cold cream. 
An excellent ointment is made of flowers of sulphur, one 
teaspoonful ; rose-water, one pint ; glycerine, one tea- 
spoonful. Rub this in well. 

If the spots are very obstinate and hard to remove, the 
following preparation should be used: Liquid ammonia, 
twenty drops ; ether, one drachm ; soft soap, one ounce. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 21 

Bathe the face with hot water and rub in a little of the 
ointment. Then wash it off with hot water. 

3. Alcohol, ninety per cent., applied by means of a 
piece of chamois skin will give tone to the skin, and re- 
move dirt and dust, at the same time stimulating the 
small glands and removing, by constant use, the black- 
heads. 

4. Soften the skin by applying soft cloths wrung out 
of warm water ; do this until the face is pink and the 
skin very soft. Press out the blackheads very gently, 
without bruising the skin, and only a few at a time.. 
Apply a drop of diluted alcohol to each pore as you press 
out the contents (a teaspoonful of alcohol and one of 
water is the proportion). Then wash the face in warm 
water, and a pure, unscented soap, using plenty of both. 

5. A simple and sure remedy for blackheads is the 
bathing of one's face every night with hot borax water, 
drying it with a soft towel, and then rubbing in gently 
some face cream. In the morning wash the face well with 
hot water and soap, and then give it a rinsing in tepid 
water, to remove the soap. 

6. An effective lotion for blackheads is made of : Car- 
bonate of magnesia, and zinc oxide, each one drachm ; 
rose-water, four ounces. Shake well and mop on the 

spots. 

Blankets. — i. Blankets require careful washing. 
The best way to wash them is in the following manner : 



22 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

Dissolve one pound of white soap in a quart of water, and 
to this add two ounces of borax dissolved in half a pint 
of boiling water. Have the tubs half filled with tepid 
water ; put half the soap mixture in each tub. Shake the 
dust from the blankets and examine carefully to see if 
there are any dirt spots. If there are, spread on a clean 
board or table ; dip a soft brush in the suds and rub 
gently until the soil is removed. Put the blankets in one 
tub of suds, and sop and squeeze to work out the dirt. 
Never rub or wring woolens with the hands. Press out 

as much suds as possible, and put the blankets in a 

(It 

second suds and wash as before. Next, rinse in one or 
two waters, having a suggestion of soap in the last water. 
Press out as much water as possible, using a wringer if 
you have one. Hang on the lines and when dry fold in 
a sheet and put under a weight. Have all the waters in 
which the blankets are washed and rinsed of the same 
temperature. Should the water be very hard, soften it 
with borax dissolved in boiling water, two tablespoonfuls 
of the powder for each tubful of water. Yellow soap 
contains resin and should not be used to wash woolens. 
Use pure white wool or ivory soap. The pound of soap 
and two ounces of borax are for a pair of good-sized 
blankets. Do the work on a clear, windy day. Do not 
rub soap on the goods ; do not hang out on a very cold 
day, and do not hang close to a hot fire or stove. 

2. Another good way to wash flannel blankets is 
carried out as follows : Put the soiled blankets to soak 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 23 

for thirty minutes in plain, soft, warm water. Prepare a 
soft jelly with white laundry soap and boiling water. 
Pour this into a tub of warm water, let it melt and lather 
it up well with the hand. Wring the blankets from the 
soaking tub, and throw them into the lather ; stir them 
about and leave to soak ten minutes, then hand rub every 
inch of the blankets, paying especial attention to stains. 
Take them out and wring, then rinse in warm water 
twice. Dry well, but do not expose them to great heat. 
When dry stretch them in every direction, and rub all 
over with a piece of clean rough flannel to make them 
fluffy and soft. A little borax helps in getting the dirt 
out, but no soda or bleaching powder should ever be 
used. 

Bleaching. — i. Among the bleachers used in the 
laundries borax and turpentine are the mildest and are 
especially good for whitening cotton and linen without 
injuring the fabric. Sal soda is a great cleanser ; it 
softens the dirt and makes its removal easy, but if used 
too strong and not removed by rinsing it rots the fabric 
and gives it a bad color. 

Ammonia also makes the clothing yellow. Borax 
makes them white. Javelle water and chloride of lime 
are used only to remove stains or discolorations. If these 
chemicals are used very strong the articles treated should 
be rinsed in ammonia water to neutralize the acid. 

A good way to bleach white goods is to wash them 
well, then spread them on clean grass. The sunlight 



24 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

and oxygen of the air accomplish what many bleaching 
materials do not accomplish. When a chemical is used 
for a bleacher it is put in the water in which the cloth- 
ing is boiled. When employed to soften the dirt it is put 
in the water in which the clothing is soaked. For a tub- 
ful or a boilerful of clothes use a tablespoonful of liquid 
soda (one pound of soda dissolved in a quart of boiling 
water), or two tablespoonfuls of liquid ammonia, or one 
tablespoonful of powdered borax, dissolved in boiling 
water. If turpentine is used, one tablespoonful. 

Clothing must always be thoroughly rinsed or the color 
will be bad. Bluing should be dissolved carefully and 
added to the last rinsing water before the clothes are put 
into the tubs. 

2. Lijien that has become yellow can be bleached in 
this manner : Make a strong suds with soap and hot 
water. Soak the articles in this for a few hours and then 
spread on the grass in the sun. When they become dry 
dip again in the suds. It may take several days and 
nights to whiten them. If you have no place to spread 
the articles hang them on the line. 

3. Muslin is very nicely bleached in the following 
manner : Into eight quarts of warm soft water put one 
pound of chloride of lime, stir with a stick a few minutes, 
then strain through coarse muslin, stirring it well to dis- 
solve it thoroughly. Put five pailfuls of warm water in a 
tub, stir in the chloride water and put in the muslin, 
which has been previously moistened with water. Let it 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 25 

remain in one hour, turning it over occasionally, that 
every part may be thoroughly bleached. When taken 
out rinse thoroughly and dry the cloth. This quantity 
will bleach twenty-five yards of yard-wide muslin. 
Spreading on the grass is a good way to dry it. 

4. FlamielSy particularly children^ s flannels that have 
become yellow may be bleached with sulphur. Wet the 
flannels and place them upon a stick over the top of a 
barrel, in the bottom of which is an old pan with some 
burning coals, and sprinkle on the fire some small pieces 
of sulphur and cover with a piece of carpet to retain the 
smoke. 

5. Bleaching with an alkali and an acidic done in 
this way : Dissolve half a pound of chloride of lime in 
two gallons of water. Let it settle and pour off the clear 
liquid. Soak the articles to be bleached in this for 
about an hour, stirring them often. Make an acid bath 
by pouring very gradually four tablespoonfuls of sul- 
phuric acid into one gallon of water. Rinse the articles 
from the chloride of lime water and put them in the acid 
bath for an hour. Stir frequently, keeping the fabric 
under the water. If any part is exposed to the air it will 
be injured. From the acid bath rinse the goods thor- 
oughly, then dry them. 

6. Small articles such as pocket handkerchief s and 
articles of lace can be bleached as described in para- 
graph 5, also in the following manner: Soak them for a 
few hours in warm soapy water, then rub them and press 



26 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

them between the hands, and rub on plenty of good 
white soap. Let the articles lie in the soap over night ; 
in the morning pour on a kettleful of boiling water — be 
sure it is boiling. Cover the dish so that the steam is 
kept in for thirty minutes ; then wash the articles very 
thoroughly and rinse them in plenty of warm water. 
To further bleach them spread them while wet upon a 
large platter and place in the sun. Sprinkle them with 
cold water several times during the day and they will 
bleach snow-white. If necessary keep this going for two 
or three days ; then wash again with boiling water. 
Lace articles should not be starched j they can be crisped 
by putting them in cold water in which two or three 
lumps of sugar are dissolved. They can be pulled out 
while wet and dried flat on a towel upon abed. 

Bleeding. — When one is bleeding from slight wounds, 
bandage firmly, first covering the wound with clean 
gauze or cotton. The blood in the veins is dark and 
flows toward the heart. In the arteries it is bright red 
and flows from the heart. It is important to have this 
in mind when one is endeavoring to stop the flow of 
blood by pressure. If the blood is dark colored and 
flows steadily it is from a vein. Lay the person down, 
and press on the wound with clean gauze or cotton. 
A piece of ice over the wound will at times prove ef- 
fective. In stubborn cases use a tight bandage near the 
wound on side farthest from the heart. Ice, or very 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 27 

hot water applied with a sponge or cloth, will check 
bleeding when it comes from a number of small points. 

The blood from the arteries comes in spurts, is a 
bright re3, and there is great danger, so a doctor should 
be sent for. at once, and no effort spared to check the 
flow quickly. Cut away clothing, elevate the wounded 
limb, and immediately apply pressure near the wound on 
side nearest the heart, having first covered the finger or 
thumb with clean towel or gauze. Replace this by in- 
serting gauze into the wound, secured with a tight 
bandage. It is sometimes necessary to put a tight 
bandage instead of the pressure of the fingers. A place 
as near the wound as possible should be selected. If the 
bleeding is from a leg or arm, elevate it, tie a knot in a 
handkerchief or suspender or cloth. Place the knot over 
the main artery, and twist it with a stick until the artery 
is closed. Do not attempt to remove dirt from the 
wound until the bleeding is stopped. Pick out the 
gravel or other foreign matter and then wash the wound 
and adjoining parts. If possible put a little carbolic 
acid in the water, one teaspoonful to the pint, or add 
two or three teaspoonfuls of table salt. When the flesh 
is torn the parts must be replaced as nearly as possible 
before the edges are brought together. Cold or hot 
cloths, wrung out of water containing antiseptic should 
be applied. Then bandage the parts firmly. 

The wounded part, whenever possible, should be 
raised so the blood will flow away from it toward the 



28 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

heart. Binding a bunch of cobwebs or a handful of 
flour on the wound, or bathing it in strong vinegar is 
sometimes effectual. 

Bleeding stops when the blood becomes coagulated or 
clotted. Every effort should be directed toward helping 
it to accomplish this by every available means. Bleed- 
ing (hemorrhage) from the lungs is always alarming, but 
unless it is very violent seldom threatens life immediately. 
Raise the head and shoulders slightly with pillows. Fill 
a pitcher with boiling water, pour in a teaspoonful of 
spirits of turpentine and let the fumes be inhaled. Give 
small pieces of ice and enforce perfect quiet. Blood 
from the lungs is bright red and frothy, and is coughed 
or spit up. 

Blood from the stomach is dark, mixed with particles 
of food and comes in the act of vomiting. The person 
should be kept perfectly quiet, lying down, and ice 
wrapped in a cloth or ice bag placed over the stomach. 
See also Wounds. 

Blisters. — i. To remove a blister 07i the foot ^d^ss 
a bit of vaselined thread through it. If the blister is on 
the sole of the foot where the skin is thick, take a fine 
white thread and grease it well with boricated or pure 
vaseline, then thread a rather coarse needle, and pass it 
through the blister from one end to the other. Then cut 
the thread on each side. Cover the spot under the 
stocking with a bit of muslin dipped in vaseline and the 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 29 

next day draw the thread out. You will find the blister 
gone. 

2. Blisters on the hands should be pricked with a 
needle and then covered with a layer of collodion. 
Collodion, one ounce ; castor oil, eight grains ; soft 
turpentine, eight grains. Apply with a fine brush. 
Two or three coats are required. 

Bloodstains. — i. Blood spots may be removed 
from linen and clothing by dropping cold water quickly 
on the stains, and then covering with a thick layer of 
common laundry starch, finely powdered. When this is 
dry it should be brushed off and the stain will be gone. 
This must be applied at once. 

2. Soak the spots in cold salt water ; then wash in 
warm water with plenty of soap ; afterward boil. 

Boils. — I. When the soreness is first felt a mixture 
or camphor and spirits of turpentine will give relief. 
Pour the turpentine on lumps of gum camphor and bathe 
the part with the liquid. 

When there is much inflammation, a flaxseed poultice 
will give rehef. 

2. A good treatment for boils is, if just beginning, to 
paint the sore and swollen part with tincture of iodine. 
Paint the surface well and then apply this mixture : Oil 
of turpentine, olive oil, laudanum, equal parts of each 
mixed together. 



30 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

3. Another good treatment is : Stypticin, twenty-five 
grains; lanolin, one ounce. Apply night and morn- 
ing. If the boil is large the center or core should be 
pressed out. 

Calcium sulphide in one-half grain doses four times a 
day is recommended to prevent boils. A good tonic 
should also be taken. 

Bones. — i. When one has broken a bone a physician 
should be sent for at once, and the patient made as 
comfortable as possible. A broken bone need not be set 
immediately. The parts should, however, be put in as 
comfortable a position as possible and most nearly corre- 
sponding to the natural one. It is necessary to give sup- 
port above and below the break. Handle the injured 
part very carefully not to force the rough ends through 
the skin. 

Improvise splints of some kind — two strips of wood, a 
couple of stout book covers, a piece of pasteboard, barrel 
staves, canes, umbrellas, broomsticks, anything con- 
venient may be used. Be sure to have the splints longer 
than the limb. Put a splint on each side of the limb and 
bind them on with handkerchiefs or bandages. Put pads 
or cushions around the limb before putting on splints. 
If necessary to move the patient a stretcher should be 
used ; never carry the patient in the arms. 

Simple fractures are those where the bone is broken, 
but does not pierce through the flesh. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 31 

A compound fracture is the case where a broken bone 
sticks out through the flesh, making a wound. 

In simple |"ractures it is necessary only to put the limb 
in splints. Patient should not be moved until this is 
done. Remove the clothing first and bind up the wound. 
If it is a compound fracture put gauze next to the wound, 
cover with clean cotton. Pad well and bandage before 
putting in splints. 

Bottles. — I. Water bottles, decanters, vinegar and 
oil bottles often become discolored and require special 
treatment. It sometimes happens that the stains cannot 
be removed from the inside of a bottle by washing with 
soap and water. In such cases there are numerous 
materials that can be used. Muriatic and sulphuric acid 
are good cleaners. Fill the bottle with water and add a 
small quantity of the acid, say two tablespoonfuls of the 
acid to from one-half to a pint of water. Cork the bot- 
tle and let it stand for several hours, then turn out the 
acid water -and wash the bottle with soap and water. 
Bottles may be cleaned more quickly by this process than 
by any other method. The acid will also remove stains 
when soap and water will not. More or less acid may be 
used as the circumstance requires. When the acid water 
is turned into the sink water should be allowed to flow 
freely through the pipes to protect them from the effects 
of the acid. Either muriatic or sulphuric acid may be 
used. 



32 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

2. If no acid is at hand, dissolve a tablespoonful of 
washing soda in a pint of water, and, when the mixture 
has partially cooled, pour it into the bottles ; then tear 
some soft paper into bits and put them into the be 
stand an hour or more, finally shaking vigorously, empty- 
ing and rinsing in cold water. Other methods of clean- 
ing bottles are : 

3. Crush some egg-shells and put them into the bot- 
tles with hot suds ; shake vigorously, turn out the suds 
and rinse with cold water. 

4. An easy way to clean bottles is to put fine coal 
ashes into them and shake well, either with or without 
water, according to the substance that soils the bottle. 

5. Put about a gill of water and two tablespoonfuls 
of household ammonia into the bottle, and after shaking 
well and emptying, rinse with clean water. 

6. Nursing bottles should be cared for in the follow- 
ing manner : After each feeding the nipples should be 
thoroughly rinsed in cold water and kept in a solution of 
boric acid between feedings. Once or twice each day 
they should be turned inside out and scrubbed with hot 
water and a brush. Bottles should be carefully rinsed 
with cold water as soon as they are emptied, and then 
filled with cold water in which is a little cooking soda, 
and allowed to stand for some time. Before the food is 
bottled in the morning the bottles should be washed 
thoroughly with pure soap and hot water, using a bottle 
brush, then boil them for half an hour. Bottles should 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 33 

never be left standing even for five minutes with food left 
in them. Food left after a meal should not be wanned 
over but thrown away. 

'"*'■ Bi:^^s. — I. A solution of oxalic acid rubbed over 
tarnished brass removes the tarnish, rendering the metal 
bright. Wash the acid off with water and soap, and the 
brass rubbed with rottenstone and sweet oil, whiting or 
any other polishing compound on the market. Vinegar 
and salt also are good to remove tarnish from brass. 

2. Brass ornaments may be easily cleaned by 
washing them over with strong ammonia. The fancy 
parts should be well scrubbed with a brush dipped in 
the ammonia. Rinse in clear water, wipe dry and polish 
with chamois skin. Whiting wet with aqua ammonia is 
also good for cleaning brass. 

3. To clean brass instruments. If the instruments 
are very much oxidized or covered with green rust first 
wash them with strong soda and water. Then apply a 
mixture of one part sulphuric acid and twelve parts of 
water, mixed in an earthen vessel. After this has been 
done polish with oil and rottenstone. If the brass has 
become greasy, it should be first dipped in a strong solu- 
tion of potash and soda in warm water ; this cuts the 
grease so that the acid has free power to act. 

4. A good lacquer for brass is made as follows : 
Put into a quart jar one ounce of pale shellac, one-fourth 
of an ounce of Cape aloes, one-eighth of an ounce of 



34 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

powdered gamboge and a pint of alcohol. When dis- 
solved, strain through cheese-cloth. The brass must be 
perfectly clean and if possible slightly warm. Apply the 
lacquer with a soft varnish brush. 

Brass Bedsteads should ordinarily be kept clean and 
bright by being rubbed occasionally with a piece of 
chamois or a piece of cheese-cloth. If the brass requires 
cleaning and polishing, take a piece of flannel moistened 
in salt and vinegar, and slightly touch the spots, then 
with a clean flannel rub the entire surface of the brass, 
using a little whiting on a dry piece of flannel as a final 
polish. Brass bedsteads may also be polished with sweet 
oil and whiting, or sweet oil and finely powdered tripoli. 

Breath. — i. Persons afflicted with offensive breath, 
(hie to stomach disturbances, should take one teaspoon- 
fiil of sulphate of soda in a glass of hot water about one 
hour before breakfast every morning. 

2. Licorice is one of the best sweeteners of the breath 
and possesses the advantage of having but little odor of 
its own. It may be chipped into small pieces and kept 
on the dressing table for occasional or constant use. It 
is said, too, that a bit of myrrh or burnt alum taken at 
night will answer the same purpose. Charcoal tablets are 
also good. 

Bronze. — To clean bronzes ^ash with strong soap-suds 
or aqua ammonia, rinse thoroughly and rub until per- 
fectly dry. Valuable pieces may be rebronzed. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 35 

Bronze is cleaned by being first carefully dusted, then 
wiped with a soft cloth slightly moistened with swet-t 
oil, and then polished with a very soft chamois skin. 

Brooms. — To preserve brooms, dip them for a minute 
or two in boiling suds once a week. This makes the 
broom tough and pliable and it will last twice as long. 
A carpet also wears longer if swept with a broom cared 
for in this manner. Brooms and brushes are also cleaned 
by being washed briskly in strong ammonia water, dip- 
ping them in and out of the water until clean. Then dry 
as quickly as possible. 

Bruises. — i. A bruise may be treated either with 
heat or cold, since both act in much the same way, caus- 
ing the blood vessels to close, and preventing the blood 
from escaping under the skin, which makes the black and 
bhie discoloration. Apply flannels wrung out of boiling 
water, or pieces of ice wrapped in cotton, as soon as pos- 
sible after the injury, and continue the application for 
half an hour, repeating it if necessary. 

2. If a bruised spot is treated at once and continu- 
ously for a time after being bruised, there will be no dis- 
coloration. Use ammonium chloride, one-half ounce ; 
tincture of arnica, one ounce; dilute acetic acid, two and 
a half ounces ; water, two and a half ounces. Mix and 
apply. 

3. A bread and vinegar poultice is good for bruises. 
Crumb the bread and soak it in a little cold vinegar, then 



36 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

beat it with a stick to a smooth paste. Apply as a 
poultice. 

4. The appearance of a bruise may be somewhat dis- 
guised by first covering it with a paste made of chalk and 
glycerine. This should be gently worked into the part 
and the excess worked off. Over it a layer of flexible 
collodion should be spread. This makes the part of a 
white color. 

5. First cleanse the bruise, then until pain is re- 
lieved, apply cloths wet with cold water, to which 
laudanum may be added. After the pain has subsided 
hot water dressings will hasten the removal of the dis- 
coloration, swelling and soreness. 

Brushes. — To wash brushes, dissolve a piece of soda 
the size of a walnut in a quart of hot water. Put the 
water into a basin, and after combing out the hair from 
the brushes, dip them, bristles downward, into the water 
and out again, keeping the backs and handles as free 
from the water as possible. Repeat this until the bristles 
look clean ; then rinse in cold water, wipe the handles 
and backs with a towel, and set the brushes near the fire 
or in the sun to dry. Wiping the bristles makes them 
soft, as does also the use of soap. 

Bubbles. — An excellent soap for bubbles. Dissolve 
castile soap in strong alcohol, let it settle or filter, and 
take the clear solution and evaporate the alcohol from it. 
To the resulting solid residue add its weight in glycerine, 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 37 

and water to make the proper consistency. The beauty 
and strength of the bubbles will compensate for all the 
trouble. 

Bugs. — See Insects. 

Bunion. — i. An excellent lotion for bunions con- 
sists of :" Glycerine, two drachms ; carbolic acid, two 
drachms ; tincture of iodine, two drachms. Apply to 
the bunions every day with a camel's hair brush. A 
daily hot foot-bath often relieves the pain from corns and 
bunions. The portion of the shoe which presses upon 
the bunion should be cut away and replaced by an in- 
visible patch. This removal of the cause, and the daily 
application of the lotion or a few drops of sweet oil, will 
effect a cure. Other treatments are as follows : 

2. Mix one part of tincture of aconite root and three 
parts of tincture of iodine. Paint the bunion several 
times a day, using a small camel's hair brush. 

3. Bind a fine linen band tightly around the foot and 
over the bunion ; wet this frequently in strong borax 
water. 

4. Cannabis indica and glycerine, equal parts, 
painted on the bunion and bound around with flannel, 
adding a few drops of the liquid to the flannel, where 
it comes in contact with the bunion, will soon effect a 
cure. See also Corns. 

Burns. — i. If one has received a shght burn and the 
skin is not broken, dry baking soda (bicarbonate of soda), 



38 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

should be spread on the part and then a clean bandage 
applied. The injured part should be moistened, then 
the dry soda, finely powdered, should be spread upon it 
to entirely cover the injury, and the whole wrapped with 
a wet cloth. The relief is often instantaneous. 

Linen cloths saturated with a solution of the soda are 
also good. They are wrapped carefully around the in- 
jured part. 

2. When the flesh is broken some oily substance must 
be used ; this must be perfectly clean and all air should 
be excluded from the wound. Clean olive oil or vaseline 
(it is better if carbolized) is usually at hand, and old 
linen should be soaked in one of these and gently wrapped 
around the part. 

3. Burns can also be treated as follows : Bathe at 
once with a solution of boric acid, then touch the wound 
with oil of peppermint, if the skin has not been broken, 
and bind on absorbent cotton. If the burn is a severe 
one, while the physician is being sent for, bathe with 
boric solution. It is needful that an antiseptic be used at 
once. More than that, boric is cooling and healing. 

4. If the fingers or toes are burned, they should be 
most carefully separated and each one wrapped by 
itself, otherwise they may stick together and cause great 
pain. Over this a layer of cotton should be placed to 
exclude all air and the whole be held in place with a 
bandage. Linen soaked in olive oil or in carbolized 
vaseline should be used for wrapping. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 39 

5. Wash the injured parts with water containing two 
tablespoonfuls of cooking soda to the pint, theu apply : 
Linseed oil, two ounces; lime water, two ounces; car- 
bolic acid, fifteen drops. Wet soft cloths with this mix- 
ture and apply ; change two or three times a day if 
necessary. 

6. Lard mixed with flour is a good cure for burns 
and scalds. 

7. If the air is excluded from a burn the pain is les- 
sened. A little carbolic acid in the water in which 
burns are washed, lessens the soreness. Turpentine ap- 
plied to a burn where the skin is not -broken gives quick 
relief. 

8. A soft salve for burns is made of : Carbonate of 
lime, two ounces ; oxide of zinc, one ounce ; olive oil or 
cotton seed oil, two ounces ; lime water, two ounces ; 
ichthyol, one-half ounce. Mix. Wash the burned part 
with soda solution, then either apply this paste direct or 
smear it on cloths and apply. Repeat as often as 
necessary. 

9. When one has been burned by gun powder and 
the powder is imbedded in the skin a poultice made of 
molasses and wheat flour is an efficacious remedy. The 
poultice should be made soft enough to spread on a piece 
of linen or cotton. Apply it to the burn ; remove it 
twice a day and wash the wound with a shaving brush 
and warm water before applying a fresh poultice. 

10. If clothing adheres to the burned surface, soften 



40 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

with water before trying to remove it. Wet tlie injured 
part wi^h water and apply baking soda. Lard oil, tal- 
low, molasses, moist flour will do in an emergency. 
Afterward mix soda, glycerine and water to make a thin 
paste, adding a little carbolic acid. Wash away the first 
application and spread on. Cover the surface with soft 
linen or cotton cloth. 

Acid burns may be treated in the same way, after the 
acid has been washed away. 

11. White lead paint is said to be a good remedy 
for burns. Mix as for painting, but considerably thicker, 
and apply with a brush. 

A neat and satisfactory dressing for burns consists in 
coating the surface with mucilage and then covering it 
with powdered lycopodium. 

12. In burns from a strong acid the part should be 
covered with dry baking soda, chalk or lime, to neu- 
tralize the acid ; dilute ammonia also is good. After an 
hour or so apply equal parts of olive oil and lime water 
on lint. 

A burn caused by strong alkali should be treated with 
an acid, as vinegar. 

13. Any mild soap scraped or sliced and dissolved 
in four times its weight of boiling water, and the solution 
thickened with bread crumbs or linseed meal makes a 
good poultice for burns and scalds. 

Bust. — The best treatment to enlarge the bust is ex- 
ternal and consists of daily massage and a good skin 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 41 

food ; this, for instance : Petrolatum (white) fourteen 
ounces ; paraffin wax, one ounce ; lanolin, four ounces ; 
water, six ounces ; oil of rose, five drops ; vanillin, four 
grains ; alcohol, two drachms. The massage should last 
about fifteen minutes for each side and be very gentle. 
After the massage, wash with tepid water and a little 
soap. Then bathe with cold water and a little alum, a 
teaspoonful to a big glass of water. After this, apply a 
little of the following mixture : Tincture of myrrh, one- 
fourth ounce; pimpernel water, four ounces; elder 
flower water, four ounces ; musk, on-e grain ; rectified 
spirit of wine, six ounces. 

Butter. — I. Butter washed with an aqueous solution 
of salicylic acid (four drachms or five teaspoonfuls of 
acid to a gallon of water), or kept in it or wrapped in 
cloths soaked in this water, keeps fresh for a long time. 
Butter already rancid can be improved by a thorough 
washing and kneading with a stronger solution (eight 
drachms or ten teaspoonfuls of acid per gallon of warm 
water, followed by washing with pure cold wafer. 

2. A simple method of treating rancid butter is to 
wash it with some good new milk, and next with cold 
spring or well water. 

Calcimine. — Take four pounds of Paris white, put it 
in a pail, cover it with cold water and let it stand over 
night. Put into a kettle four ounces of glue, and cover 
it also with cold water. In the morning set the glue on 



42 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

the stove and add enough warm water to make one 
quart ; stir it until dissolved. Add the glue to the 
Paris white, and pour in warm water until the pail is 
three-quarters full. Then add bluing, a little at a time, 
stirring it well until the mixture is slightly bluish. Use 
a good brush, and go over one spot on the wall until it 
is thoroughly wet. If the brush dries quickly, add more 
warm water, as the mixture is too thick. The brush 
must be kept wet. 

Camphor Ice. — For chapped hands and lips. 
I. Two ounces of refined lamb tallow and a piece of 
gum camphor as large as a good-sized walnut. Melt 
together. 

2. Mutton or lamb tallow, six ounces ; spermaceti, 
three drachms ; white wax, two and a half drachms ; 
powdered camphor, one and a half ounces. Melt the 
first three by gentle heat, then add the camphor ; stir 
well as the mixture begins to cool ; continuing until it is 
about ready to set ; then pour into large-mouthed bottles 
or tin boxes, and allow to harden. 

Carafe. — To clean a glass carafe, fill it with strong 
ammonia water and some small pieces of potato peel, 
shake vigorously and rinse with clear water. Cut glass 
carafes need much care to keep them looking bright. 

Carbolic Acid. — i. The best and safest antiseptic 
solution for general use is carbolic acid. One teaspoon- 
ful to the pint of water stirred well makes a satisfactory 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 43 

wash. This can be used for washing cuts, wounds, sores, 
ulcers and all skin affections. 

2. Carbolic acid is very useful to use about the 
house. Two tablespoonfuls of the liquid acid added to 
half a pailful of water makes a good wash for woodwork, 
closets, floors, etc., insuring freedom from insects. A 
tablespoonful in a quart of water makes a good disinfect- 
ant for rinsing garbage pails, sinks, etc., and the same 
strength may be used for flushing the plumbing. Two 
ounces of the crystals dissolved by means of heat or a 
hot water bath should be added to a little less than a 
pint of water in a bottle. This liquid may be added in 
any proportion to water. Carbolic acid is poisonous. 

Carpet. — i. An experienced chemist says the follow- 
ing recipe is warranted to remove soil and spots from the 
most delicate carpets without injuring them. 

Make a suds with a good white soap and hot water, 
and add fuller's earth to this until it is of the consistency 
of thin cream. Have plenty of clean drying cloth, a 
small scrubbing brush, a large sponge and a pail of fresh 
water. Put some of the cleaning mixture in a bowl and 
dip a brush in it ; brush a small piece of the carpet with 
this ; then wash with the sponge and cold water. Dry 
as much as possible with the sponge, and finally rub with 
dry cloths. Continue this until you are sure that all the 
carpet is clean ; then let it dry. 

2. The following mixture is also good for cleaning 



44 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

carpets : Dissolve one pound of the best laundry soap in 
four gallons of hot water ; add two ounces of sal soda, 
one ounce of borax, one ounce of fuller's earth ; mix 
thoroughly. Then add four gallons of cold water and 
stand aside. Have the carpet removed from the floor, 
thoroughly shaken, the floor cleaned and the carpet 
relaid. Then take a little of the mixture and spread it 
over a space not more than three feet square. Take an 
ordinary scrubbing brush and scrub the mixture 
thoroughly into the nap. Have at hand a pail of clear 
warm water to which you have added a few drops of 
ammonia. Wash the mixture off with this water, then 
with a dry cloth rub the carpet for a monient until the 
carpet seems quite clean. 

3. An excellent soap for cleatiing carpets : Dissolve 
five pounds of soap in three quarts of water. Take from 
the fire and add a half pint of ox-gall, two ounces each of 
turpentine and benzine, and one gill of household 
ammonia ; stir frequently until cool, then pour into glass 
jars and cover tightly. When ready to clean carpets 
dissolve some of the soap in warm water and proceed as 
directed in paragraphs i and 2. The carpet should be 
free from dust before the cleaning is begun. 

4. To wash and freshen up a carpet on the floor, 
put two tablespoonfuls of ammonia in one gallon of 
warm water, and with a sponge or soft broom go all over 
the carpet and you will be surprised to see how bright it 
will look after this treatment. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 45 

5. Another way to brighten a carpet is to first sweep 
it clean, then wipe it over with a soft cloth that has been 
wrung out of ammonia water — one gill of household 
ammonia to a gallon of water. Another method is to 
wipe it with water and ox-gall — one pint of ox-gall to three 
gallons of water. 

6. A handful or so of salt sprinkled on a carpet be- 
fore sweeping will carry the dust along with it and make 
the carpet look bright and clean. 

7. Grease spots on carpets may be taken out by 
covering them with fuller's earth, wet with spirits of 
turpentine. Let it stand until the earth is a fine, dry 
powder. Another method is to place blotting paper 
under the grease spot, wet the place with spirits of turpen- 
tine, place a piece of blotting paper over it, and on the 
upper blotting paper set a hot flatiron. 

8. Grease may be removed from a carpet by the use 
of naphtha. Use it only in the daytime, not allowing 
any light or fire in the room for some time after, as the 
naphtha is extremely inflammable. 

9. Grape and fruit staiiis may be removed by wash- 
ing with warm soap-suds and a little ammonia water. 

10. Tar spots may be removed with spirits of turpen- 
tine. Apply generously and remove with a flannel 
cloth. 

Castor Oil. — i. A little glycerine (half the amount 
of the castor oil) mixed with the oil, and five to ten 
drops of any of the aromatic oils, as sassafras, winter- 



46 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

green, etc. ; put into the dose, the natural taste of the oil 
will scarcely be perceived ; or, 

2. Take the juice of a lemon or two, put a few drops 
of essence of cinnamon into it. Heat the oil and stir 
into the lemon juice, which forms an emulsion, and 
almost wholly covers the taste of the oil. 

Catarrh. — i. A teaspoonful of boracic acid powder 
dissolved with a teaspoonful of salt in a half pint of boil- 
ing water is a certain relief for nasal catarrh. Use this 
lukewarm three times a day, pouring a little into the 
palm of the hand and snuffing up into the nostrils. 

2. Another good remedy is : One-fourth teaspoonful 
of borax, and one-fourth teaspoonful of soda, dissolved 
in one cup of warm water. Use with a douche or nose 
cup, or snuff up into the nostrils. 

3. An alkaline antiseptic liquid made as follows will 
be found beneficial in catarrh of the nose and throat : 
Sodium benzoate, five grains ; carbolic acid, one drop ; 
glycerine, one drachm ; water, one ounce. Mix. Use by 
spraying or snuffing two or three times a day. 

Ceilings that are unpapered, when they begin to look 
rough and manifest a tendency to peel should be gone 
over with a solution of one ounce alum to one quart 
water. This improves the appearance of the ceiling. 
Whiting mixed with glue, water or calcined plaster and 
water makes a good putty for filling cracks in plastered 
ceilings. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 47 

Cellar. — i. A tub of charcoal and another of lime 
are excellent things to keep in the cellar. They make 
the cellar sweeter and dryer, and the charcoal is 
convenient to have on hand for fuel. The unslaked lime 
should be put in a tub or barrel, with space for it to ex- 
pand to twice its bulk. It slacks in the air and expands 
rapidly during the process. 

2. To purify the air of the cellar and destroy parasit- 
ical growth, place some roll brimstone in a pan, set fire to 
it, close the doors and windows as tightly as possible for 
two or three hours ; repeat every three months. 

Cement. — i. A cement that is very useful for 
mending broken chi?ta is made of powdered asbestos and 
silicate of soda (liquid glass). Mix the asbestos with the 
silicate of soda until the mixture is like thick cream. 
Cover the broken edges with a coating of this and press 
together, fastening or holding the parts together for at 
least an hour. When possible use a rubber band. The 
article should then stand several days to allow the cement 
to harden. Articles mended with this cement may be 
washed, if washed quickly, but must not be allowed to 
remain wet for any length of time. 

2. Dissolve half an ounce of gum arabic in a wine- 
glassful of boiling water, and stir into it sufficient plaster 
of Paris to make a thick paste. Apply with a soft brush 
to the edges of the broken article, holding them in 



48 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

place for several minutes. This cement is most satis- 
factory. 

3. A strong and easily applied cement for household 
use is the white of an egg, beaten up with an equal 
quantity of water, adding enough slaked lime or 
plaster of Paris to make a paste. Apply immediately. 

Chafing. — I. To relieve chafing, rub the chafed 
parts with compound stearate of zinc. Rub the powder 
in well. 

2. Chafing of the skin of a baby is more easily pre- 
vented than cured. The skin must be kept clean, but 
strong soap should not be used, neither should the skin be 
rubbed too harshly. Some bland absorbent powder like 
starch or talcum powder should be used after each bath 
in all the folds of the skin, in the neck, under the arms, 
groins and in the folds of the thighs. If plain water for 
bathing produces an undue amount of irritation, the bran 
or salt bath should be tried. The bran bath is made as 
follows : Put one quart of ordinary wheat bran in a 
bag made of cheese-cloth, and place this in four or five 
gallons of warm water. The bran bag should be 
frequently squeezed and moved about until the bath 
water resembles a thin porridge. The temperature of 
the bath should be about ninety-five degrees, and it should 
be given every evening. 

Chamois skin. — i. To wash chamois skins: Put 
six tablespoon fuls of household ammonia into a basin or 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 49 

bowl with a quart of lukewarm water. Soak the chamois 
in this for one hour. Work it about with a spoon, press- 
ing out as much of the dirt as possible ; then lift into a 
basin of tepid water and wash well with the hands. 
Rinse the skin well and dry in the shade ; then rub be- 
tween the hands to soften. This is for chamois that 
has been used in cleaning silver, brass, etc. For 
chamois jackets put two quarts of water with the six 
spoonfuls of ammonia. 

2. Use a weak solution of soda or borax and warm 
water, rub plenty of soap into the leather, and allow it 
to remain in soak for two hours, then wash it with the 
hands and rinse in a weak solution of warm water, soda 
and soap. Water alone hardens it. After rinsing, 
wring out in a rough towel, and dry quickly, rub it be- 
tween the hands and brush it well. 

Chaps. — I. The following lotion is recommended for 
chapped hands : Salicylate of soda, one drachm ; balsam 
of peru, one-half ounce ; glycerine, one and a half ounces ; 
rose-water, six ounces. Mix well, and apply to the 
hands night and morning. 

2. Camphor ice is an effective remedy for chapped 
hands and lips. 

3. A cream for chapped hands and lips is made of: 
One ounce of white wax, melted; four ounces of 
glycerine; four or five drops of oil of rose or other 
perfume to suit. 



50 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

4. Glycerine lotion for chapped hands and lips : 
Mix one and a half ounces of glycerine ; four drachms of 
borax, and one and a half pints of water. 

Chenille. — To thoroughly cleanse a chenille table- 
cover or portiere, shake it free from dust and put it 
into a bucket containing two quarts of boiling water 
and two quarts of benzine. Cover and allow it to stand 
for fifteen minutes. Remove the cover, shake up and 
down in the water, wring, shake and hang on the line to 
dry. If it is not sufficiently clean repeat the process. 
There should be no light nor fire in the room at the 
time. 

Chenille portieres may also be cleaned by washing 
in gasoline or naphtha, according to the directions given 
for cleaning silk. 

Chiffon. — To revive chiffon, have some very hot 
irons. Spread a wet cloth over the iron and hold the 
chiffon over the steam until it is free from wrinkles. 
Renew the wet cloth and hot iron as soon as the steam 
flows feebly. Spread the chiffon where it will dry 
quickly. 

Chilblains. — i. To cure chilblains, which in winter 
affect some people, take equal parts of white vinegar, 
spirits of turpentine and an egg and shake them well to- 
gether in a bottle. Then rub this on gently. This is 
for unbroken ones. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 51 

2. For broken chilblains an ointment to be applied 
night and morning may be made from benzoate of zinc, 
one scruple, mixed well with one ounce of fresh lard. 

3. A sure cure for chilblains is : Olive oil, spirits of 
turpentme, aqua ammonia, and oil of peppermint, 
each one-fourth ounce. Mix, and anoint night and 
morning. 

4. Keep the feet dry and warm and avoid sudden 
changes of temperature. When feet are very cold do not 
warm them at the fire or place them in hot water, but 
bathe them with cold water, then rub them dry with 
cold towels. This will tend to prevent chilblains. 

Chills and Fever. — Many acute diseases begin with 
a chill followed by fever, which subsides after a time, and 
is followed by a second chill. The doctor usually pre- 
scribes doses of quinine. 

The nurse must try to promote a reaction during the 
chill, by hot bottles or hot water bags at the feet and un- 
der the arms, covering the patient with warm flannels 
and giving warm drinks, warm lemonade, hot milk, etc., 
but no stimulant without the doctor's permission. When 
the fever comes on ice and cold water may be given. A 
cooling laxative is usually ordered, as citrate of magnesia. 
The body may be sponged if the temperature is very high. 
A cloth wet in alcohol and bound on the forehead will 
help to relieve the headache, wetting it without removing 
it when it becomes dry. When the fever decreases the 
invalid begins to perspire profusely. The whole person 



52 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

should be gently dried from time to time, a flannel night- 
dress put on, the room darkened and the sufferer allowed 
to sleep. The doctor should be consulted, as proper 
treatment is necessary to prevent, if possible, a recurrence 
of the attack. His directions should be faithfully carried 
out. 

Chimney. — When a chimney is burning out, shut all 
the doors of the room so as to prevent any current of air 
up the chimney, then throw a few handfuls of common 
salt upon the fire in the grate or stove. This will ex- 
tinguish the fire in the chimney. In the process of burn- 
ing the salt, muriatic acid gas is evolved, which is a good 
extinguisher of fire. 

China. — To have brilliant china : Fill the dish pan 
with hot water, add soap and a tablespoon ful of borax. 
This will make a fine suds. Take a dish mop and with- 
out touching the hands in the water wash the dishes clean 
and well. Rinse with hot water and dry quickly, using 
a clean towel. 

Choking — In bad choking where the patient turns 
dark in the face no time is to be lost. Send for the doc- 
tor at once, as he may have to open the windpipe to save 
the victim's life. Meanwhile slap the sufferer on the 
back between the shoulders. Open the mouth and insert 
the finger as far down as possible to try to grasp the ob- 
struction and remove it. Turn the person head down- 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 53 

ward and slap the back forcibly. If this does not suc- 
ceed, you may, by pressing the hinder portion of the 
tongue, bring on vomiting, and so secure relief. 

A good plan is sometimes tried with children, viz., 
that of pressing the chest and stomach against something 
hard, as a table or a chair, then slapping or thumping 
the back between the shoulder-blades. In this way air is 
driven from the lungs through the windpipe so forcibly 
as often to expel the obstacle. When the obstruction 
consists of a coin, a good plan is at once to take the chijd 
up by the heels, and at the same time give it a shake or 
slap its back. Fish bones can sometimes be gotten rid of 
by swallowing a mouthful of bread. If these remedies 
fail the doctor must be depended on. 

Cholera Morbus. — i. Apply heat in the form of 
hot water bags or bottles, plates, bags of hot salt or a 
large mustard plaster over the seat of the pain to relieve 
the pain and vomiting. Hot baths are sometimes useful. 
A physician prescribes the following treatment : Tinc- 
ture of opium, one ounce; tincture of capsicum, one 
ounce; spirits of camphor, one ounce; chloroform, 
three drachms; alcohol, sufficient to make five ounces. 
To be taken after a dose of castor oil. Teaspoonful in a 
little water every twenty to forty minutes until relieved. 

Cider. — Professional cider makers often use calcium 
sulphite (sulphite of lime) to keep cider sweet. To use 
it, it is simply necessary to add one-eighth to one-fourth 



54 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

of an ounce of the sulphite to each gallon of cider in the 
barrel, first mixing the powder in about a quart of the 
cider, then pouring it back into the barrel, and giving 
the latter a thorough shaking or rolling. After standing 
bunged several days, the cider may be bottled off. The 
article is sulphite of lime, not sulphate. Too much must 
be guarded against or it will impart a slight sulphurous 
taste to the cider. 

A little cinnamon, wintergreen or sassafras, etc., is 
sometimes added to sweet cider in the bottle together 
with a drachm or so of bicarbonate of soda at the moment 
of driving the stopper. This helps to neutralize the acids, 
and renders the liquid effervescent when unstoppered ; 
but if used in excess it may affect the taste. 

Cistern. — When the cistern begins to make its presence 
felt by impure odors, it is a sanitary measure to drop a 
few pounds of charcoal, tied up in a bag, into it. 
When the cistern becomes infested with vermin, go to 
the nearest pond or river, and with a small net (a piece 
of mosquito netting will do), collect a dozen or more min- 
nows, and put them in the cistern, and in a short time 
the water will be clear, the wiggletails and bugs or lice 
being gobbled up by the fishes. 

Cleaning. — i. A cleansing fluid that is very highly 
recommended is made as follows : One gallon of gaso- 
line, one teaspoonful of ether, one teaspoonful of chloro- 
form, two teaspoonfuls of ammonia, one gill of alcohol ; 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 55 

mix well, and be very careful not to use near a fire or in 
a closed room. Do not use the last half cupful if clean- 
ing delicate colors, as the ammonia settles and will dis- 
color light fabrics. Buy the last four drugs in quantities 
of an ounce and keep for future use what is not needed 
at once. This fluid will clean silk and woolen materials 
without causing the fabric to shrink. It will not yellow 
white goods. It may be used on the most delicate colors 
and fabrics. Pour out sufficient of the fluid to cover the 
articles to be cleaned, using a china wash bowl or new 
tin pan ; put the articles in and wash as you would in 
water, rubbing the soiled spots especially with an old soft 
tooth-brush on a flat surface. Wring out from this and 
rinse in a second portion of the liquid; wring out again 
and hang in a draft until the fluid evaporates. Save the 
fluid thus used, as it can be used the second time on dark 
materials like men's clothes, black dresses, carpets, etc. 
If the article is too large to put in the fluid use a sponge 
or cloth similar in color to the soiled fabric. The fore- 
going fluid is a very effective cleanser and remover of 
grease spots, etc. 

2. To remove grease spots and otherwise clean soiled 
fabrics the following is also good : Benzine or gasoline, 
one pint ; chloroform, one-half ounce ; ether, one drachm ; 
oil of bergamot, ten drops. Moisten a small piece of cloth 
or sponge and apply to the grease spot. Do not work 
near a fire or light, as the fluid is explosive. 

3. Black goods, such as serge, cheviot, cashmere, 



56 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

etc., are easily cleaned. Grease spots should first be 
removed,' and the cloth then washed. Make a lather of 
warm water and a good soap, and a teaspoonful of borax 
to every two quarts of water. Into this dip the goods 
up and down and wash between the hands ; then wring 
gently and pat partly dry ; hang in the shade, and when 
nearly dry iron on the wrong side with a moderately 
warm iron. Always rinse once in lukewarm water, and 
iron until the material is perfectly dry. Do not rub the 
cloth on the wash board and do not wring it tightly. After 
using gasoline or naphtha rub vaseline or cream into 
the hands and it is also well to wear old gloves while 
doing the work. 

Another way to clean these materials is not to dip the 
goods in the tub, but to use the suds with a wad of the 
material as a sponge, rubbing the suds well into the cloth 
on the right side after placing it on a clean board. Al- 
paca may be washed in the suds, a little gum arable be- 
ing dissolved and added to the rinsing water. 

4. Grease can be removed from colored cashmere 
with French chalk : Rub it on the spot, then let it re- 
main all night and in the morning brush it off ; if neces- 
sary repeat the treatment. 

Colored cashmeres can be washed in warm water, 
with one tablespoonful each of ammonia and beefs gall to 
a pail of water. Wash quickly and rinse in water in 
which there is a little beef's gall. Never rub soap on 
black or colored woolen goods. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 57 

Grease may be removed by rubbing the spot with a 
lump of wet magnesia, and after it is dry by brushing off 
the powder. Remove all grease spots before washing 
silk or woolen goods. In sponging any fabric always do 
it with downward strokes. 

5. French sateens may be cleaned by putting them in 
a lather of lukewarm soap-suds in which there has been a 
cup of salt dissolved ; rinse in water also having salt in it ; 
dip in very thin starch and roll up in a clean sheet j in 
two hours iron on the wrong side. 

6. Clean black and navy blue lawns and batistes by 
washing in hot suds, containing a cup of salt ; rinse in 
very blue water and dry in the shade ; then dip in very 
blue and thin starch, and, when nearly dry, iron with a 
moderately warm iron on the wrong side. 

7. To clean slightly soiled white felt cover with warm 
white flour. Allow it to remain covered for twenty-four 
hours, then shake well. If badly soiled rub thoroughly 
with French chalk or magnesia instead of flour. 

8. White crepon, cashmere, albatross, etc., may be 
dry-cleaned with hot, dry flour or corn-meal, rubbing the 
goods in a large bowl as though the flour were water ; 
brush ofl" the flour, shake well and repeat the process if 
necessary. Then iron on the wrong side .if the fabric 
needs it, but hanging in the evening air will remove or- 
dinary wrinkles. 

9. When black materials begin to look gray or rusty, 
they may be brightened by sponging on the right side 



58 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

with equal parts of alcohol and water, and, while damp, 
ironing on the wrong side. 

ID. Thin black material may be restored to stiffness 
by laying over the goods a cloth previously dipped in 
gum-arabic water. Cover the ironing board with old 
black cloth and use a wad of black to dip into the gum 
water, as white leaves lint on the goods. Pin the cloth 
to be stiffened smoothly to the board, lay over it the 
piece which has been dipped in the gum water and a dry 
cloth over that. Iron with a hot iron. 

11. When pages of books, magazines or drawi?tgs be- 
come soiled from handling, dust or soot, one of the most 
satisfactory methods of cleaning them is by rubbing with 
stale bread. This is what many artists use when working 
with charcoal. Take only a small piece of bread at a 
time, changing it as soon as it becomes soiled or dis- 
colored. 

12. White kid gloves, white slippers, wall paper and 
numerous other articles, when not deeply soiled, may be 
cleaned with stale bread or dry bread crumbs. 

13. Clothing may be cleaned with the cleaning 
fluids described in paragraphs i and 2 ; also with the fol- 
lowing : One and one-quarter bars ivory soap j one- 
eighth pint ammonia ; four ounces borax ; one and a half 
ounces soap bark. 

Shave the soap fine, boil untjl dissolved in one and a 
half pints water ; add the borax, boil ten minutes ; steep 
the soap bark in one pint water for thirty minutes. Add 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 59 

ammonia and one pint cold water, mix together and add 
water to make three gallons. This is a valuable cleaning 
compound for clothing, draperies, carpets, etc. 

14. The following soap is unexcelled for the purpose 
of cleaning and renovating clothing of all kinds : Good 
white soap, one-fourth pound ; alcohol, one ounce ; 
beef's gall, two ounces ; saltpeter, borax, honey, sul- 
phuric ether and spirits of turpentine, of each one-fourth 
ounce ; camphor gum, three drachms ; pipe clay, one 
drachm ; common salt, one small teaspoonful. Put the 
camphor into the alcohol, the powdered pipe clay into 
the beef's gall, pulverize the saltpeter and put it, the 
borax and the salt into the honey. After two or three 
hours slice the soap into a kettle, with the gall mixture, 
and place over a slow fire, stirring till melted ; take off 
and let stand until a little cool ; then add all the other 
articles, stir well together and put into a fruit jar as soon 
as possible ; then screw on the top to prevent the evapora- 
tion of the strength and keep it in a dark closet. 

When ready to use this soap take a rounding table- 
spoonful and dissolve it in a quart of boiling water. 
Keep it hot while using it. The article to be cleaned 
should be thoroughly bruslied free of all dust ; and the 
soap solution thoroughly brushed into the whole garment. 
After going over the garment in this way, dry it in the 
open air. 

Paint, tar, pitch, ink, grease spots, etc., can be re- 
moved by rubbing a little of the soap into the spots, let 



6o RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

it remain a few minutes, then scrape off and cleanse with 
ammonia water. 

Closet. — I. A damp closet can be made sweet and 
dry by using charcoal or unslaked hme. Put half a 
bucket of quicklime in the closet ; in a week or so it will 
have become slaked and will have so expanded as nearly 
to fill the bucket. Throw this lime away and put fresh 
quicklime in the closet. This lime will do service twice : 
sweeten and dry your closet and sweeten the ground 
where it is afterward scattered. Instead of the lime a 
pan of charcoal may be used ; it will absorb moisture 
and sweeten the atmosphere. 

2. Wherever there is an earth closet or privy, dry 
copperas or unslaked lime should be sprinkled in it in 
abundance. 

Copperas is an efficient disinfectant of closet pipes. 
It should be dissolved in water and poured into the pipes. 
See Disinfectants. 

Cockroaches. — i. Absolute cleanliness is the only 
safeguard against these troublesome insects. Not a par- 
ticle of garbage should be left in the kitchen over night. 
Turpentine added to the water when washing around the 
sink and cupboards and a little poured into the drain- 
pipes is a preventive. Many of the insect powders will 
kill them. Borax is the best non-poisonous exterminator. 
Sprinkle it freely about the infested parts and it will ef- 
fectually drive the roaches away. As the salt is perfectly 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 6i 

harmless to human beings it is to be preferred to the 
poisonous substances commonly used. 

2. Cucumber parings, it is said, will also drive the 
cockroaches away. 

3. Corrosive sublimate sprinkled around the infested 
places will kill the cockroaches almost instantly. Be 
careful, however, with this substance, as it is a deadly 
poison. 

4. A good powder to exterminate cockroaches: 
Wheat flour, four ounces ; powdered sugar, eight ounces ; 
powdered borax, two ounces; unslaked lime, two 
ounces. Mix and keep dry. Scatter this powder about 
on papers ; and leave no vessels containing liquids un- 
covered, as the poisoned roaches will get into them when 
trying to get water. 

Coffee Pot. — I. Every few days the coffee pot 
should be boiled out with a strong borax solution. This 
will keep it clean on the inside. 

2. When the inside of a coffee pot has become dis- 
colored from long use, fill it nearly full of soft water, 
put in a small piece of hard soap and boil it one hour ; 
then scald and rinse well and the work will be done. 

Coffee Stains. — i. Soak the stained fabric in cold 
water; wring; spread out and pour a few drops of 
glycerine on each spot. Let it stand several hours ; 
then wash with cold water and soap. 

2. Soap should not be allowed to touch the spot until 



62 . RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

the stain is removed. Spread the stained part over a 
basin, and pour clean, boiling water through it. If the 
stain proves obstinate rub in a little oxalic acid, pour on 
more boiling water, and place the article to soak. 

3. Coffee stains may be removed from a white dress 
with the yolk of an egg mixed with twenty drops of 
glycerine ; wash off with warm water and iron on the 
wrong side. 

4. Glycerine rubbed over coffee stains will remove 
them from woolen and other materials. Wash the place 
afterward with lukewarm water and iron on the wrong 
side until it is dry. 

Cold I. To break up a recent cold nothing is 

better than the following treatment : First -take a 
draught of saline laxative to relieve the system. Follow 
this with a hot foot-bath. Or a hot sponge bath is very 
effectual, the patient allowing the steam to rise over him 
while he sits enveloped with blankets which fall over the 
sides of the Lath, and then is rubbed quite dry with 
Turkish towels and is put to bed. He should also drink 
copiously of hot lemonade either just before or after 
getting into bed. It is also well to put a bottle of hot 
water or a hot flatiron to the feet, and to cover up with 
an extra amount of clothing. After these things have 
been done one's chances to break up the cold are as good 
as it is possible to make them. Nothing better can be 
advised. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 63 

To make a foot-bath most effective, fill the foot tub or 
bucket three-fourths full of as hot water as can be borne. 
Mustard and salt are advantageously added to the water. 
Place by your side a teakettle full of boiling water, a 
tincup and a bucket three-fourths full of cold water. 
Put your feet into the bucket containing the hot water. 
As soon as you can bear the water a little warmer, pour 
some of the boiling water into the bucket, in such a 
manner as not to come in immediate contact with the 
feet. In a few minutes more boiling water should be 
added, and the feet kept in the water for forty-five 
minutes. 

Then take one foot out of the hot water and dip it into 
the cold water, and quickly take it out and wipe it dry, 
and put on a dry, warm woolen stocking. Do the same 
with the other foot and go to bed, removing the stockings 
after you have been in bed a few minutes. 

This is the proper way to take a foot-bath for the pur- 
pose of obtaining relief from a cold. 

2. When children have a cold they should be given a 
tablespoonful of castor oil, then a mustard foot-bath, a 
glass of very hot and ^strong lemonade, put to bed, and 
kept indoors the next day. If they cough let them inhale 
the steam from a boiling teakettle, being careful not to 
burn them. 

3. Hot lemonade taken in connection with a hot foot- 
bath is one of the best remedies for a cold. Roll a good- 
sized lemon, cut it up in a bowl, put on two or three 



64 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

tablespoonfuls of sugar, beat and press out the juice and 
then pour on two-thirds of a pint of boiling water, stir it 
well and drink as hot as can be borne, preferably after 
you are in bed ; then cover up warm. 

4. A good remedy to help to stop a cold is : Am- 
monium carbonate, twenty grains ; morphine sulphate, 
one- sixth grain ; almond emulsion, four ounces. Mix. 
Take two tablespoonfuls every three hours. 

5. For a cold in the head the drawing of hot water 
morning and evening into the nostrils and blowing it out 
again several times cleanses and strengthens the mem- 
branes. Salt and water employed in the same way also 
afford relief. 

6. For a cold in the head the following is recom- 
mended : One-half ounce of pulverized sugar, one- 
fourth ounce of powdered borax; one-fourth ounce of 
common salt ; four drops of oil of peppermint. Use as a 
snuff. 

7. Camphor in liquid form is said to be a certain 
remedy for a cold in the head. It may easily be used 
in the following manner : Fill a cup about one- third 
full of strong camphor, add to this enough boiling water 
to make it steam, then inhale it in the nostrils, drawing 
as long breaths as possible. At first it will seem un- 
bearable, but one must persevere to have the cure effec- 
tual. Keep it up five or ten minutes, and repeat in three 
or four hours. Also grease the bridge of the nose and 
the forehead with camphorated oil, letting it dry in. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 65 

Then put a tablespoonful of sugar in a goblet, add a 
tablespoonful of camphor, stir it, fill the glass half- full of 
water, and take a tablespoonful every half-hour. 

8. For a stitnmer cold in the head, get an ounce of 
menthol crystals, put a teaspoonful in a basin and pour 
over them a quart of boiling water. Inhale the steam as 
it rises from the menthol. See also Cough. 

Colic. — For colic in children : Sodium bicarbonate, 
fifty grains; aromatic spirits of ammonia, two drachms; 
peppermint water, three ounces; camphor water, one 
ounce. Mix. Dose, one teaspoonful repeated in one 
hour if necessary. 

Cologne. — I. A fine cologne is made of: Oil of 
bergamot, two drachms ; oil of lemon grass, two drachms ; 
orange, one drachm ; rosemary, one-half drachm ; neroli, 
three-fourths drachm ; essence ambergis and musk, each 
four drops ; cologne alcohol, one pint. Mix and shake 
occasionally. 

2. Oil of lavender, two drachms ; oil of rosemary, 
one drachm ; orange, lemon and bergamot, one drachm 
each of the oil ; essence of musk, two drachms ; attar of 
roses, ten drops ; proof spirit, one pint. Shake all to- 
gether three times a day for a week. 

3. Oils of lavender and bergamot, each one and a 
half drachms ; oil of rosemary, one-half drachm ; oil of 
cinnamon* two drops ; essence of lemon, one and a half 



66 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

drachms ; cologne alcohol, one pint. Mix all thoroughly 
together. 

Color. — I. Many of the delicate colors that have 
been changed or faded by the use of soap may be restored 
by the use of an acid. Acetic acid in the rinsing water 
will nearly always revive blues, pinks and grays. If the 
acetic acid is not convenient a good cider vinegar will 
answer. Lemon juice will sometimes restore the color 
when acetic acid has failed, particularly in delicate gray 
and pinks. The water should be only slightly acid. It 
is always best to try a small piece of the goods first. 

2. A tablespoonful of sal soda in a gallon of cold 
rinsing water will brighten blue and purple lawns, while a 
teacup of vinegar to a gallon of water will improve green 
and pink shades. 

3. If the color has been taken out of a linen waist by 
careless washing it is claimed that it may be restored by 
dipping the article in a solution of one part of acetic acid 
to twelve parts of water. 

4. The color in cotton goods may be fixed by solu- 
tions of alum or salt used before the cloth is washed. 
Alum is the better material to use, but salt is the cheaper 
and more convenient. Dissolve a pint of salt in four 
gallons of water and soak the garments or cloth in this 
for an hour. If alum is used allow one ounce to each 
half gallon of water. The solutions should be cold when 
the articles are soaked in them. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 67 

5. Before washing black and white, stone, slate or 
maroon colored cotton goods, soak them in a solution of 
salt and water prepared as above or by dissolving two 
cupfuls of salt in ten quarts of cold water, and hang them 
in a shady place to dry. The salt sets the colors. 
When dry, wash in a light suds in the usual way. Do 
not use hot suds ; water moderately warm is best. A 
little salt in the rinsing water is beneficial. 

6. Blue, stone and slate-colored articles may be made 
to retain their color perfectly by adding sugar of lead to 
the water in which they are washed for tiie first time. 
Dissolve one ounce of sugar of lead in a pailful of hot 
water; stir carefully until it is thoroughly dissolved, and 
let the solution cool. When about milk-warm put in the 
articles and let them remain an hour. Hang up to dry 
before washing. When dry, wash in bran water. 
Sugar of lead is poisonous, but there is no danger in this 
way of using it. 

7. Washing in bran water is also good to set colors. 
Mix two cupfuls of wheat bran in cold water, making a 
smooth paste ; then stir it into one quart of soft boiling 
water. Let it boil one hour, then strain into five or six 
quarts of soft warm water. No soap is necessary as bran 
has cleansing properties of its own. A tablespoonful of 
salt should be added if the color is apt to run. Rinse 
thoroughly in warm water. This way of washing is good 
for garments or cloth previously soaked in salt or alum 
water. 



68 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

8. When color on a fabric has been destroyed by acid, 
ammonia is applied to neutralize the same, after which an 
application of chloroform will, in many cases, restore the 
original color. 

Complexion. — i. A buttermilk lotion for bleaching 
and beautifying the skin is made of : Lactic acid, two 
drachms ; glycerine, one-half ounce ; essence of white 
rose, one and a half drachms 3 tincture of benzoin, one 
drachm ; water, sufficient to make six ounces. Mix the 
acid and glycerine with the water, and add the other in- 
gredients, previously mixed. Apply to the face twice 
daily. 

2. An elegant preparation called French Milk of 
Roses for beautifying the complexion : Tincture of 
benzoin, four drachms ; tincture of storax, two drachms ; 
spirit of rose, two drachms ; alcohol, two and a half 
ounces; rose-water, sixteen and a half ounces. Apply 
night and morning. 

3. A harmless and reliable complexion powder is 
made of : Best zinc oxide, four ounces ; rice powder, 
seven ounces ; precipitated chalk, two ounces ; talcum 
powder, one ounce ; orris root powder, one ounce ; oil of 
rose, three drops. Reduce ingredients to a fine powder, 
mix, sift several times, adding perfume last. This can 
be tinted with a suggestion of powdered carmine. Cream 
powder is made by adding a trace of cadmium yellow or 
chrome yellow. See Face, Creams and Skin. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 69 

Constipation. — i. The most serious of the minor ail- 
ments is constipation. * Most persons who lead a seden- 
tary life, and many who do not, suffer from it either oc- 
casionally or habitually. There is one cardinal principle 
to be laid down for its treatment. Do not rely upon 
medicine to relieve it. Unless judiciously administered 
in connection with other measures it only aggravates the 
trouble. 

Regulate the diet, being careful to avoid eating as 
much meat as usual, substituting for it vegetables, stewed 
or fresh fruit, particularly apples, tomatoes, prunes and 
figs. Oatmeal, Indian and rye meal porridge are bene- 
ficial, the more so if they are eaten with molasses in- 
stead of milk. Coarse bread, as graham, oatmeal or 
brown bread, is to be preferred to that made from fine 
wheat flour. Drink coffee without sugar and eschew tea, 
cocoa and milk. Plenty of water should be taken dur- 
ing the day. Sometimes a glass of cold water before 
breakfast is a sufficient aperient. 

2. Saline laxatives are very effective to relieve con- 
stipation, and are the least objectionable of the remedies 
that can be used. An excellent formula is : Bicarbon- 
ate of soda, eight ounces; tartaric acid, seven ounces; 
Rochelle salts, two and a half ounces ; sulphate of mag- 
nesia, three ounces. Mix. For laxative effect, take one 
tablespoonful ; for cathartic effect, take one tablespoonful. 
Put the salt in a dry glass, fill two-thirds with water and 
drink at once. 



^o RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

3. Hunyadi-Janos or Carlsbad laxative waters are 
very efficacious. Artificial Carltbad salt can be made 
at home and used instead of the imported water. It con- 
tains : Sodium chloride, one ounce ; sodium bicarbonate, 
two ounces; sodium sulphate, four ounces. Mix. 
Take two tablespoonfuls in warm water before breakfast. 

4. A laxative for infants is made of: Syrup of 
senna, one ounce; manna, one-half ounce; syrup of 
orange, to make three ounces. Mix. Dose : One tea- 
spoonful at bedtime or oftener if necessary. 

Convulsions in children proceed from a variety of 
causes. A fit of indigestion or the irritation from cutting 
teeth may produce them. The possible cause should be 
looked for and remedied. While it is best to send for 
the doctor, there is generally no cause for immediate 
alarm. The child is rigid for a moment, with fixed eyes, 
clenched hands and contracted face. Then the muscles 
relax and the little patient falls into a heavy sleep. A 
physician says that the child should be placed in a hot 
bath as quickly as possible, a tablespoonful of mustard 
being added to the water. A cloth wrung out of cold 
water should be wrapped around the head and changed 
as it becomes warm. After being immersed he should 
be lifted out, wrapped in a blanket and left to sleep. If 
there is another convulsion the bath should be repeated. 
Placing the child into ice-cold water and then rubbing 
vigorously is recommended. ^ 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 71 

Copper. — The following mixture will be found the 
best thing for cleaning copper: Whiting, pulverized 
rottenstone, and soft soap, each one pound ; vinegar, 
one cup ; as much water as makes it a thick paste ; spirits 
of turpentine, one-half pint. Let it boil ten minutes, and 
when nearly cold, add the turpentine and put in suitable 
jars or cans. Put a little on a rag and rub the article 
until it becomes bright. Polish with soft leather dipped 
in bath brick. 

Corns. — I. A good treatment consists in applying 
castor oil. Wet a piece of linen with the oil and lay it 
on the corn. A bread and vinegar poqltice is also good. 

All sorts of remedies for corns are to be found every- 
where. Collodion is generally an ingredient of the best 
remedies. Here are a few practical recipes that are 
known to be good. 

2. Before applying any remedy the corn should be 
soaked in hot water and softened, then cut or scrape 
away as much of the hard tissue as possible, then apply 
the remedy. 

3. Extract of cannabis indica (Indian hemp) six 
grains ; salicylic acid, one drachm ; oil of turpentine, 
one-half drachm ; collodion, one ounce ; acetic acid, 
glacial, twelve drops. Mix the first three ingredients 
thoroughly, add the collodion and mix until dissolved, 
then add the acetic acid. The bottle should be kept 
tightly corked. Apply to the corns, using the cork to 



72 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

apply it with. Be sure to use the Indian * hemp 
and not the American article ; the latter is not easily 
soluble. 

4. Salicylic acid, one drachm ; lactic acid, one 
drachm ; lard, one ounce. Apply to corn night and 
morning. After the corn is softened it may be lifted out 
with a sharp-pointed knife blade. 

5. Soak the corns in warm water, shave them and 
apply a little acetic acid occasionally. Put a thin plaster 
over the corn to prevent chafing after the acid has been 
put on. 

6. For a soft corn dip a piece of linen cloth in tur- 
pentine and wrap it around the toe on which the corn is, 
every night and morning. It will prove an immediate 
relief to the pain and soreness, and the corn will disap- 
pear after a few days. An easily tried remedy is to tie a 
slice of castile or any other pure soap upon the soft corn 
when going to bed. 

A piece of absorbent cotton placed between the toes 
affords some relief from a soft corn. It is also well to 
soak the foot in hot water, then to paint a corn with a 
solution of one drachm of salicylic acid in one ounce of 
collodion. If the corn is very tender a small corn-plaster 
may be worn, which will avoid all pressure on the sore 
part. The corn should be carefully pared before it is 
dressed. This last remedy is particularly suited to chil- 
dren. \ 

7. When the feet become callous, try rubbing the 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 73 

callous part with pumice stone, and then paint it with a 
solution of salicylic acid and alcohol. 

Cough. — I. There are few disorders more irritating 
to the sufferer and to those about him than a cough. A 
slight, hacking cough is often a bad habit ; when it is at 
all under the control of the will it should be sternly re- 
pressed. Sometimes the uvula, the pendulous part of the 
soft palate, at the back of the mouth, becomes relaxed, 
the point touches the tongue, producing a tickling sensa- 
tion, which requires a cough to relieve it. A little dry 
tannic acid put in a quill and blown on the uvula will 
contract it, or half a teaspoonful of the powder mixed 
with two teaspoonfuls of glycerine, stirred into half a 
glass of warm water and used as a gargle. 

When a cold has been taken and there is cough with 
soreness of the chest, bed should be prescribed for fear 
of a severe attack of bronchitis. Soak the feet in a pail 
of hot water in which is dissolved three tablespoonfuls of 
mustard, and rub the chest with warm camphorated oil. 

2. A sudden and wearing attack of coughing often 
needs immediate attention. In an emergency that ever 
useful remedy, hot water, will often prove effective. 
Water almost boiling should be sipped when a paroxysm 
comes on. A cough resulting from irritation is relieved 
by hot water through the promotion of secretion which 
moistens the irritated surfaces. Hot water also promotes 
expectoration and so relieves the dry cough. 



74 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

3. A paroxysm of coughing may often be arrested by 
sipping a tablespoonful of glycerine in a wineglassful of 
hot milk or water. 

4. A very valuable and effective cough syrup for 
recent colds is made of the following ingredients : Pare- 
goric, one and a half ounces ; tincture of capsicum, one 
drachm ; tincture of tolu, three ounces. The dose is a 
teaspoonful in a little water every three hours. 

5. A cough medicine that is particularly suitable for 
children is made of: Syrup of squills, one fluid drachm ; 
gum acacia, powdered, one-half fluid drachm ; ammo- 
nium chloride, eight grains; peppermint water, enough 
to make two fluid ounces. A teaspoonful every two 
hours is the dose for a child. 

6. In severe paroxysms of coughing, either in coughs, 
colds or consumptives, one or two tablespoon fuls of pure 
glycerine in pure rye whiskey or hot rich cream will 
aflbrd almost immediate relief; and to the consumptive 
a panacea is found by daily use of glycerine internally, 
with the proportion of one part of powdered willow char- 
coal and two parts of pure glycerine. 

7. Roast a lemon, taking care not to burn it; when 
thoroughly roasted, cut into halves and squeeze the juice 
upon three tablespoonfuls of powdered sugar. Mix, and 
take a teaspoonful whenever the cough or tickling of the 
throat troubles you. This is good as well as pleasant, 
even for children. \ 

8. Home-made cough syrup. Get two ounces of 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 75 

Iceland moss at the drug store. Take four large poppy 
heads, seeds and all, and one tablespoonful of whole barley. 
Add to all this three pints of water, which should be 
slowly boiled down to two pints, then strain. Add to 
this one pound of rock candy. The old-fashioned brown 
rock candy is preferable, but the ordinary white rock 
candy can be used. Keep in a cool place. 

The dose is a tablespoonful for adults. It may be 
taken as often as once an hour if the cough is very 
troublesome. For children, the dose is one teaspoon ful ; 
for infants, half a teaspoonful. 

This remedy is good for coughs that are accompanied 
by tickling in the throat, and it also modifies the terrible 
coughing spells that sometimes occur during the course 
of whooping cough. 

Cracks. — i. If you need to use plaster of paris for 
stopping cracks, mix it with vinegar. Vinegar prevents 
it settling too quickly and makes it easy of manipulation. 

2. An excellent cement to stop cracks or flaws in 
wood is made as follows : Put any quantity of fine saw- 
dust of the same kind of wood into an earthen vessel and 
pour boiling water on it ; stir it well, and let it remain for 
a week or ten days, occasionally stirring it ; then boil it 
for some time, and it will be of the consistence of pulp or 
paste. Put it into a coarse cloth and squeeze all the 
moisture from it. Keep for use and when wanted mix a 
sufficient quantity of thin glue to make it into a paste ; 



76 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

rub it well into the cracks or fill up the holes with it. 
When quite hard and dry clean the work off and the im- 
perfection will be scarcely discernible. See also under 
Floors. 

Cramps. — i . The following remedy is recommended 
for cramps, colic and cholera morbus : Oil of pepper- 
mint, two drops ; oil of anise, two drops ; oil of cinna- 
mon, four drops; tincture of catechu, one-half ounce; 
aromatic tincture, one ounce ; chloroform, twenty drops ; 
spirits of ether, two and a half ounces ; alcohol, four 
ounces. Mix. The dose is one-half to two teaspoonfuls 
in a little water every one-half to three hours. 

2. An old and well-known remedy for cramps, cholera 
morbus, etc., is: Tincture of capsicum, one part; tinc- 
ture of opium, one part ; tincture of rhubarb, one part ; 
spirits of peppermint, one part ; spirits of camphor, one 
part. Mix. Dose, fifteen to thirty drops. 

3. Oil of cloves, cinnamon, anise and peppermint, 
each forty-five drops ; laudanum, one ounce ; ether, one 
ounce ; chloroform, one-half ounce ; tincture of cayenne, 
one-fourth ounce ; alcohol, three ounces. Mix. 

The dose for an adult is a teaspoonful in two table- 
spoonfuls of sweetened water ; repeat in one-half hour or 
sooner according to the severity of the pain. 

For children the dose is from one-eighth to one-half 
teaspoonful according to age. See also under Pain. 

Crape. — i. An English receipt for renovating crape 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 'jy 

is a handful of fig leaves boiled in two quarts of water 
until reduced to a pint, sponging the material with this 
and hanging it up until it is dry. 

2. To renovate crape pieces or veils, rip out the hems, 
brush off the dust with an old silk handkerchief, and wind 
as many thicknesses as you have smoothly around a clean 
broom handle or clothes stick. Have your wash-boiler 
half full of boiling water and lay the broomstick length- 
wise over this, the ends resting on the edge. Keep the 
water boiling and allow the crape to steam for the better 
part of a day, turning it so that all will get the same 
steaming. Then put the broom away until the crape is 
perfectly dry, say for twenty-four hours, when the crape 
may be unpinned, and it will be found clean, a good 
black and with the crisp feeling it had when new. Crape 
should not be worn in the rain, as moisture makes it limp 
and dull looking. 

3. Skimmed milk and water, with a little bit of glue 
in it, made scalding hot, is excellent to restore rusty 
crape. If clapped and pulled dry like muslin it will look 

as good as new. 

Creams. — Nothing is better for the skin than a good 
cold cream. For roughness and redness of the skin, 
chapped hands or face, sunburn, tan, etc., and to make 
the skin soft, smooth and white, a good cream gives quick 
and refreshing relief. The following formulas are among 
the best that can be used. All are perfectly harmless. 



78 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

1. A good cream, which is recommended by a phy- 
sician who makes a specialty of treating the skin, and one 
which he says will whiten, soften and refine the skin, and 
even cure severe cases of pimples, is made by melting to- 
gether, and then beating until perfectly cold and creamy, 
the following ingredients : One ounce each of white wax, 
spermaceti, almond oil, olive oil and benzoated lard. 

Before using this or any other cream, wash the face 
thoroughly with hot water and soap. Dry gently, and 
while the face is still warm apply the cream by taking a 
little on the fingers and rubbing over the face and neck 
for fifteen or twenty minutes, until the skin partially, if 
not entirely, absorbs the cream. 

2. To soften and refine the skin and to eradicate 
ivri7ikles. One ounce of spermaceti ; one ounce of white 
wax; five ounces of best oil of sweet almonds; one and 
one-half ounces of rose-water ; half an ounce of pure pow- 
dered borax. Dissolve the borax in the rose-water, and, 
if the weather is cold, set the bottle in a pan of moder- 
ately warm water. Melt wax and spermaceti by putting 
the dish containing them into a saucepan of boiling 
water ; add the almond oil ; remove from fire and pour in 
rose-water quickly. Beat to a foam with an egg-beater. 
When partially solid add two drops of oil of rose. Cease 
beating before the mass is firm. Pour into little porcelain 
jars and keep in a cool place. 

3. Almond cold cream. Spermaceti, one ounce ; 
white wax, one ounce ; sweet almond oil, seven ounces ; 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 79 

distilled water, four ounces ; powdered borax, thirty 
grains ; couniarin, one-fourth grain ; oil of bergamot, 
twelve drops ; oil of rose, three drops ; oil of bitter 
almond, four drops ; tincture of ambergris, three drops. 
Melt the wax and spermaceti ; add the almond oil, then 
carefully add the water in which the borax has previously 
been dissolved ; stir until cool, then add the other in- 
gredients and continue stirring rapidly until cold. It 
will then be soft and creamy. 

4. Avery fine witch hazel cream. White petrolatum, 
nine ounces \ white wax, one and a half ounces ; sper- 
maceti, one and a half ounces ; distilled extract of witch 
hazel, three ounces ; oil of rose geranium, ten drops. 

5. Glycerine cream. Spermaceti, four drachms ; 
white wax, one drachm ; oil of almonds, two troy ounces ; 
glycerine, one troy ounce. Melt the spermaceti, wax 
and oil together, and when cooling put in the glycerine 
and perfume to suit. 

6. Tincture of benzoin, two and a half drachms; 
rose-water, two ounces ; glycerine, one and a half 
ounces. Add the rose-water to the tincture of benzoin, 
stirring briskly, then add the glycerine. 

7. Good cucumber cream is expensive to buy but can 
be easily and cheaply made at home. Carefully wipe 
two large or three small cucumbers, and, without remov- 
ing the rind, cut into blocks about an inch square. Put 
six ounces sweet almond oil into a double saucepan, fill- 
ing the outer saucepan with cold water. Put the pieces 



8o RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

of cucumber into the oil, and heat very slowly to the 
boiling point. Move the saucepan back and let simmer, 
not boil, for four or five hours. Strain, pressing out as 
much juice from the cucumber as you can ; and to each 
six ounces of the strained liquid add one ounce white 
wax and one ounce cocoa butter. Put in the saucepan 
again and heat, stirring constantly until thoroughly 
mixed. Then remove from the fire, and beat gently 
with an egg-beater until cold, adding during the beating 
process two teaspoonfuls simple tincture of benzoin. 
The quantities could, of course, be halved. Put into 
jars and cover. 

8. A pleasant healing cream for the face is made of: 
Spermaceti, one ounce ; white wax, one ounce ; almond 
oil, three ounces ; lanolin, one ounce. Melt together 
and when cool add three ounces of water, one ounce of 
witch hazel and about half a teaspoonful of tincture of 
benzoin. This makes a good lotion for a sore 
skin. 

9. A menthol toilet cream to itse after shaving or to 
protect the face from sunburn is made of : Tragacanth 
powder, forty grains ; glycerine, two drachms ; menthol, 
twenty-five grains; alcohol, three drachms; water, 
enough to make soft — eight ounces; liquid carmine, 
sufficient to color pink. Mix the tragacanth powder 
with the glycerine until dissolved ; dissolve the menthol 
in the alcohol, and add to the tragacanth and glycerine ; 
add a few drops of liquid carmine. Mix very thor- 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES Bt 

oughly and gradually add the water, stirring briskly all 
the time. 

Croup.-^i. When a doctor cannot be secured 
promptly in an emergency it is necessary to have a good 
remedy on hand when children are inclined to be 
croupy. 

Raw linseed oil is such a remedy ; and a half-pint is 
sufficient quantity to keep on hand. It is said that this 
oil is an unfailing remedy. Half a teaspoonful is a dose 
unless the child is choking very badly. Then give a 
teaspoonful. 

It acts in two ways. In the first stage of croup where 
there is not much mucus, it is loosened and carried off 
through the bowels. In the second stage it causes vomit- 
ing ; but unlike ipecac, it leaves no soreness of the throat 
as an after difficulty. 

It is rarely necessary to give more than one dose, 
when the child will get relief and go to sleep again. 
With this remedy in the house, membranous croup need 
cause no terrors to the mother of children. 

2. Apply flannels wrung out of hot water to the 
throat, and cover with another cloth to retain the heat. 
Use mustard plasters on the soles of the feet and chest 
(for a few moments only). Take a tablespoonful of 
lard, add a few drops of turpentine and a like amount of 
camphor, and grease the chest, neck, side of the nose, 
between the eyes, and between the shoulders opposite 



82 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

the lungs thoroughly ; cover the chest and back with dry 
flannel. Give hot foot-bath ; if no relief, try cold. 
Keep the room warm, and hot water boiling in the room 
so that the steam will reach the sufferer. 

In membranous croup slack lime in the room, allow- 
ing the patient to inhale it. 

3. An external remedy for croup. Thoroughly 
saturate flannel with spirits of turpentine, and place 
upon the throat and chest. This is said to be a most ef- 
fectual remedy. Three to five drops of turpentine may 
be given on a lump of sugar if considerable distress is 
manifested when the child wakes up. 

4. An emetic to cause vomiting. Two teaspoonfuls of 
mustard mixed in three or four tablespoonfuls of warm 
water, relieves a child with croup at once. A teaspoon- 
ful of lard warmed and given is another instantaneous 
emetic. Either may be repeated if necessary. 

5. To prevent croup. Take a piece of chamois 
skin, make it like a little bib, cut out the neck and sew 
on tapes to tie it on. Then melt together equal parts of 
tallow and pine pitch, rub some of this in the chamois 
and let the child wear it all the time. Renew this with 
the mixture occasionally. 

6. A physician prescribes the following for mem- 
branous croup : Calomel, two grains ; sodium bicar- 
bonate, twenty-four grains ; powdered ipecac, one grain ; 
powdered pepsin, twenty-four grains. Mix and make 
twelve powders. Give one powder every two hours. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 83 

Curtains. — i. To launder lace curtains. Shake 
all the dust from the curtains and then soak them over 
night in plenty of cold water. In the morning rinse 
them out of two or three waters before putting them into 
the suds. Next put them in hot suds and wash them by 
sopping and squeezing. Wash in a second tub of suds, 
then put them into a tub of boiling water. After an 
hour rinse thoroughly. If it is desired to have them 
very white slightly blue the last water, but if an old look 
is desired the water should be slightly colored with 
black tea. Dry them in the open air, then put them 
through thin starch and through the wringer. If one 
has frames the curtains should be put in them, but if not 
some old sheets may be tacked on the floor or pinned to 
the carpet and the curtains pinned on them. The cur- 
tains must be pulled straight and each point drawn out 
and pinned down. Two or three curtains may be placed 
together. Two persons can do the work much better 
than one. Two days' time is required to dry the cur- 
tains when they are doubled in this manner. 

2. To starch lace curtains use a very thin, clear 
starch and have it very hot. Put a tablespoonful of 
starch in a saucepan ; add half a cup of cold water, and 
when the starch is thoroughly moistened pour over it 
one quart of boiling water. Just a shaving of sperm 
may be stirred in the starch at the last moment. 

3. Fine curtains are sometimes damaged by soap and 
water. They may be dry cleaned in the following man- 



84 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

i 

ner : Lay the curtains on cheese-cloth and fold back 
and forth, with a layer of corn-meal between each fold, 
until the curtains are in a pile. Lay a cloth over them 
and baste so that the curtains are held smooth. Beat 
the meal through and through for twenty minutes with any 
kind of a beater. Shake this out and replace with fresh 
meal, made very damp with gasoline ; repeat the beat- 
ing. This takes out all the dirt and gummy substances. 
Clienille curtains and many other articles may be cleaned 
this way, but caution is necessary. There should be no 
lamp or fire in the room at the time. 

Cuts. — I. For washing cuts, wounds and sores car- 
bolic acid is the best antiseptic solution that can be used. 
One teaspoonful of the acid to a pint of water, stirred 
well, makes a satisfactory solution. 

Bichloride of mercury (corrosive sublimate), seven and 
a half grains to the quart of water may be used for the 
same purpose, but it must be handled carefully, as it is a 
deadly poison if taken into the stomach. 

2. A good antiseptic for bathing cuts and wounds is 
one composed of forty parts of lysterine or glycerine to 
one part of carbolic acid. A boracic acid solution is also 
good. 

3. A healing lotion for small cuts is : Spirits of 
camphor, one ounce; glycerine, one-fourth drachm; 
borax, one-eighth drachm ; carbolic acid, five grains. 
This may be applied twice a day. 

4. Another good healing lotion is : Suet or lanolin, 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 85 

one ounce ; camphor, twenty grains ; glycerine, one-half 
ounce. Melt all together, pour into a vessel and allow- 
to cool. 

Cut- Worms. — An effectual remedy for cut-worms. 
Take Paris green and mix it with what millers call 
"shorts" or "middlings." Use just enough of the 
Paris green to give a slight green color to the shorts. 
Dampen slightly and scatter it about infested places. 
The worms prefer it to any plant. After eating it they 
soon die. 

Dandruff. — To cure dandruff, shampoo the head with 
the yolk of an egg beaten in a pint of warm water. 
Rinse in several waters, finishing with cold ; dry, and at 
night apply a lotion made by dissolving ten grains cor- 
rosive sublimate in five ounces distilled witch hazel. 
Put just a little of this upon the scalp only, rubbing it in 
very gently. This should be done until the dandruff is 
gone, which may require from two to six bottles. Use 
the egg shampoo once a week. When the scalp is clean 
and the dandruff nearly cured have twenty grains of 
quinine and a tablespoonful of fine salt dissolved in a 
pint of best bay rum, and apply this to the scalp twice a 
day. Massage the scalp gently, and do not brush too 
hard or too much. See also under Hair. 

Diamonds. — Diamonds and other precious stones 
may be cleaned by washing them with soap and water 



86 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

with a soft brush, adding a little ammonia or potash to 
the water, and then drying in fine boxwood sawdust. 

Diarrhcea. — For a simple diarrhoea, ginger tea, pep- 
permint, or warm drinks usually afford relief. Three 
ounces of cinnamon water, one ounce of subcarbonate of 
bismuth, one tablespoonful every three or four hours is 
good. A tablespoonful of sweet oil for an adult, or a 
teaspoonful for a child, will relieve irritation. 

Dish-"washing. — The best way to wash dishes is as 
follows : Have ready a pan of hot suds and a pan of 
clear hot water. Wash the dishes in the hot suds, rinse 
them in the hot water, drain them on a wooden rack or 
in a wire basket, and wipe them perfectly dry with clean 
towels. The glass should be washed and wiped first ; 
next the silver ; then the china, and so on to the tin and 
iron vessels. As soon as the water becomes soiled or 
cold it should be thrown away, and the pans be filled 
with clean hot water. Linen towels are best for the 
glass, silver and china ; coarser cloths will do for the 
kitchen dishes ; but they should be clean and dry. 

Disinfection. — i. Close all windows and doors ex- 
cept one for exit. Paste paper over stovepipe holes, 
cracks in windows, transoms, etc. The following 
method is simple and clean : Soak two teaspoonfuls of 
powdered gum tragacanth in one pint of cold water for 
an hour, then place the bowl in a pan of boiling water 
and stir frequently until the gum is all dissolved. Have 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES ^7 

newspapers cut into strips about two inches wide and 
paste several thicknesses together. Paste these over the 
cracks and holes, leaving the door for exit to be sealed 
after the fumigation is started. If there is a fireplace in 
the room it should be covered with several thicknesses 
of thick brown paper. The gum tragacanth is easily 
washed off and does not discolor either paint or 
woodwork. Everything in the room should be exposed. 
Clothing and bedclothes should be suspended upon lines 
stretched across the room ; books should be opened out ; 
in fact nothing should escape the disinfecting fumes. A 
temperature of not less than sixty-five degrees Fahrenheit, 
and a moist condition in the room is most favorable to 
thorough disinfection. Sprinkling the floors, and where 
it can be done without injury, the walls of the room just 
before fumigation, or boiling water poured into a tub, 
will secure the proper condition of humidity. One 
method of disinfecting that requires very simple appa- 
ratus is pouring formaldehyde upon permanganate of 
potassium. The only apparatus necessary is a flaring ten 
quart tin pail. Do not use an iron vessel. 

Measure the room and multiply length, breadth and 
height together. This gives the number of cubic 
feet. 

For each 1,000 cubic feet one quart of forty per cent, 
solution of formaldehyde and thirteen ounces of per- 
manganate of potash are required. It is necessary to use 
precisely these relative quantities of formaldehyde and 



88 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

potash ; if the proportion is not correct the chemical re- 
sults are not the same, and the quantity of disinfecting 
gas liberated is altered. 

The vessel used must be large enough to prevent an 
overflow as rapid chemical action is set up, and the 
vigorous foaming and boiling will throw a part of the 
mixture on the floor if a small vessel is used. The 
crystals of permanganate of potash should be finely 
powdered and placed in the pail. Then pour *n the 
required quantity of formaldehyde. Retire at once from 
the room after pouring on the formaldehyde, for gas is 
promptly released and is injurious if breathed in any 
quantity. The room should be kept closed for at least 
three hours, then opened, aired thoroughly and cleaned 
in the usual way. Woodwork that was covered during 
the process should be washed with a one one-thousandth 
solution of bichloride of mercury. 

2. To disinfect with sulphur : Place the sulphur, in 
the proportion of at least three pounds for each one thou- 
sand cubic feet of air space in a strong iron kettle, and 
this in an iron pail, tub, dish or pan, somewhat larger 
than the kettle, and pour sufficient water in the outer 
vessel to reach half way up the sides of the kettle. The 
use of a small quantity of alcohol poured over the 
sulphur, or a few live coals of fire placed in the same will 
facilitate the burning of the sulphur. A portion of the 
water in the outer vessel will be vaporized by the heat 
from the burning sulphur, and accelerate the germicidal 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 89 

action of the fumes, and no fire from the kettle can 
spread to articles in the room. It is best to distribute the 
sulphur in two or more kettles so as to fill every part of 
the room with the fumes in equal volume in the least pos- 
sible time. 

Fabrics that would be bleached or damaged by the 
sulphur fumes should be taken from the room previous 
to the fumigation, after being liberally sprinkled with a 
forty per cent, solution of formaldehyde and rolled into a 
tight bundle. A coating of vaseline upon metallic sur- 
faces that could not be washed with a disinfectant and 
previously removed from the room, will prevent dis- 
coloration. The room should remain closed for six to 
eight hours, then opened and ventilated freely. Con- 
tents should be removed to the outer air. 

3. Bichloride of mercury, being a poison, should be 
used with great caution. The necessary strength to be 
used is two drachms to one gallon of water, or one drachm 
to one gallon. For some purposes the former strength is 
required ; for others the latter will suffice. 

Soiled clothing, bed linen, flannels, napkins and other 
washable articles are disinfected by being immersed in a 
solution of bichloride of mercury, one drachm to one gal- 
lon of water in a wooden pail or tub, and covered up for 
two hours ; then remove, wash and boil thoroughly. 

Two tablespoonfuls or one fluid ounce of forty per 
cent, formaldehyde solution to each gallon of water, is an 
effective disinfectant of clothing. Leave the articles in 



90 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

two hours, then wash and boil. Boiling water alone is a 
disinfectant of much efficiency. 

4. After exposure to any contagious disease, the per- 
son exposed should sponge the entire surface of the body 
with a solution of bichloride of mercury, one drachm to one 
gallon of water, bathing not only the body but the hair 
and beard, if any, as well. 

5. The use of mercury should be directed by the at- 
tending physician or health officer. 

6. Carbolic acid is useful as a disinfectant only in a 
limited degree and for specific purposes. 

For use in the sick room, as a wash for disinfecting 
hands, or surface of body, a solution made by dissolving 
from four to six ounces of the acid to one gallon of 
vfater, should be used. This solution should be used by 
nurses and others for washing the hands after handling 
the infected patient. Cuspidors, slop bowls and other 
receptacles for receiving discharges should contain a 
liberal supply of this solution. 

Discharges from the bowels should be covered with this 
solution, the vessel cover put on and allowed to remain 
an hour before disposing of the same. 

Bedding, soiled linen and other clothing that have 
come in contact with the patient, should be placed in a 
tub or pail containing this solution, and allowed to soak 
therein for two or three hours, then washed. For this 
purpose the acid solution may contain as high as seven 
ounces of acid to the gallon of water. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 91 

7. Discharges from a sick person should be always 
received in a vessel containing a disinfectant. A good 
one is made by dissolving chloride of lime in water. 
Keep in a stone jar. Use about one quart of the solu- 
tion for each discharge. Vomiting and discharges from 
the mouth should be received in a cup half full of this 
solution. 

8. For disinfection of drains^ cesspools y sewers and 
water closets^ owing to the large quantity required, other 
and cheaper disinfectants may be used, such as chloride of 
lime, sulphate of iron (copperas), permanganate of 
potash, etc. To disinfect pipes use a solution of sulphate 
of iron (copperas) in the following manner : Dissolve 
one pound in a gallon of water and pour down the pipes 
three or four times a week. A funnel should be used to 
pour the solution into the opening of the pipe. 

9. Carbolic acid may be used also to disinfect sinks, 
basins, etc. Allow four tablespoonfuls of acid to each 
pint of cold water ; pour down the pipes and let it remain 
half an hour, then flush them. 

10. If the odor of carbolic acid is objected to, per- 
manganate of potash may be used to disinfect plumbing. 
Dissolve half a pound of permanganate of potash in four 
gallons of water, and pour this carefully down the pipes. 
If this solution is allowed to stand in bowls or basins it 
will stain them purple. To remove such stains apply a 
weak solution of oxalic acid ; then rinse the acid off as 
soon as it has been used. 



92 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

Dress Shields. — To keep these clean put them two 
or three times a week, if necessary, into suds to which a 
little ammonia has been added ; rub them together lightly, 
rinse in clear water, and hang up to dry. 

Drowning. — Rules for the treatment of a drowned per- 
son. Loosen clothing, if any. Empty the lungs of 
water by laying body on its stomach, and lifting it by the 
middle so that the head hangs down. Jerk the body a 
few times. Pull the tongue forward, using a handker- 
chief, or pin with string, if necessary. Imitate the motion 
of breathing by alternately compressing and expanding 
the lower ribs, about twenty times a minute. Alternately 
raising and lowering the arms from the sides up above the 
head will stimulate the action of the lungs. Let it be 
done gently but persistently. Apply warmth and friction 
to extremities. By holding the tongue forward, closing 
the nostrils, and pressing the Adam's apple back so as to 
close entrance to the stomach, direct inflation may be 
tried. Take a deep breath and breathe it forcibly into 
the mouth of the patient, compress the chest to expel the 
air and repeat the operation. DorCt give up. People 
have been saved after hours of patient, vigorous effort. 
When breathing begins, get the patient into a warm bed, 
give warm drinks, or spirits in teaspoon doses. Fresh air 
and quiet will hasten recovery. 

Dusting — I. Take a soft cloth that is not linty. 
Mix one part turpentine, one part linseed oil and one 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 93 

part varnish. Mix well and bottle. Dampen the cloth 
with this preparation. When dusting it will take up all 
dust and make the furniture bright. The cloth can be 
used a number of times before it needs dampening 
again. 

2. To protect the lungs from dust, have an elastic 
fastened on a small, flat sponge. When about to sweep 
or do any dusty work, wet the sponge, slip the elastic 
around the head, and draw the sponge over the nose. 
This will protect the lungs, provided the mouth is kept 
closed. 

Earache. — i. When an infant has earache heat will 
be found to be the simplest and most effective remedy. 
The child should lie with his ear against a covered hot 
water bag, or a piece of flannel should be heated over a 
lamp and placed against his ear, changing it often so as 
to keep it very hot. If this does not help, syringing the 
ear with hot water may afford relief. The water should 
be about 105 or no degrees Fahrenheit. Babies who 
have earache should be taken to an ear specialist and a^ 
careful examination of the ears made. 

2. A good device for the relief of earache is to fill 
the little finger of a kid glove with hot salt, and insert 
this in the ear before heat is applied from the outside. 
Heat may be applied externally by means of a hot water 
bag, a heated hop pillow, a bag of hot salt or a heated 
flannel cloth. The heart of a roasted onion put in the 



94 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

ear, or a drop or two of warmed sweet oil and arnica 
may be used with certainty of easing the pain. 

Foreign bodies in the ear do not usually occasion much 
discomfort for a time, and as the passage of the outer ear 
is closed at the end by a membrane they cannot penetrate 
farther, and may safely be left until they can be removed 
by a competent person. 

When an insect has entered turn the head on one side 
with the affected ear uppermost and gently pour in a lit- 
tle warm water. When this is allowed to run out the 
drowned intruder comes with it. Water should not be 
used when a pea or bean has been introduced, because 
they swell when moist. 

For inflammation or soreness of the ears, apply a solu- 
tion of one-half teaspoonful of boric dissolved in a cup of 
warm water, dropping this into the ear with a medicine- 
dropper, allowing it to run out slowly, and wiping it 
carefully away. Boric is pure boracic acid. 

When there is discharge from the ear, wash the ear 
with a solution of sixty grains of bicarbonate of soda, fif- 
teen grains of borax, and one pint of warm water. Use 
a small syringe and wash out the ear. If this does not 
check the condition, or if the case is a chronic one, dry 
the ear carefully with absorbent cotton on a toothpick 
and then drop in ten or twelve drops of the following : 
Resorcin, eight grains; tincture of opium, ten drops; 
distilled or pure water, sixty drops. The drops 
should be retained in the ear about thirty minutes, 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 95 

the patient holding the head bent toward the opposite 

side. 

Easter Eggs. — An old and simple way to color eggs 
for Easter is to boil them in a kettle with a lot of the 
outer peel of red onions. 

Easter eggs can be colored many different shades with 
aniline dyes. The dye should be diluted to the proper 
shade and the eggs boiled in it. Green, the color of hope 
and resurrection, is particularly appropriate. 

Eggs can be boiled hard and painted in water colors 
with a flower or a butterfly as symbolic of the resurrec- 
tion. 

Another way to prepare eggs is to coat them with 
metallic paint and frost them with diamond dust ; or to 
cover them with gilt, silver or colored paper. 

A simple way by which children may prepare Easter 
eggs is by tying up each egg separately in a piece of 
bright colored silk or cotton, having previously pasted 
some little design on the surface of the egg. Have the 
eggs boiled slowly for half an hour and then set aside to 
cool. When quite cold untie the covering and the eggs 
will be found nicely colored and with a clear impression 
of the design. These eggs may be placed in egg cups 
which have been lined with fringed tissue paper, and 
placed upon the breakfast-table on Easter morning. 

Eczema. — i. The following ointment has proven 
very successful in the cure of eczema : Salicylic acid, 



96 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

ten grains ; calomel, fifteen grains ; zinc oxide, two 
drachms ; lanolin, one-half ounce ; carbolized vaseline, 
one-half ounce. Mix. Apply night and morning. 

2. Another most excellent cure for this affection is : 
Sulphur, one-half drachm ; acetanalid, one-half drachm ; 
bismuth oxide, one-half drachm ; lead acetate, one-half 
drachm ; liquid tar, thirty-six drops ; white vaseline, six 
drachms. Apply one to three times a day. 

3. A simple domestic cure that has cured cases of 
eczema that seemed incurable is : Five cents' worth of 
calomel mixed with three or four tablespoonfuls of fresh 
lard. Mix thoroughly and apply. 

Eggs. Ways to test eggs. The density of eggs de- 
creases as they grow old. If a new-laid tgg is placed in 
a pint of water into which two ounces of salt have been 
dissolved it will immediately sink to the bottom. An 
egg a day old will either sink to the bottom or float a 
short distance from the bottom. An tgg three days old 
will remain half way down the vessel containing the 
liquid, and a still older one will float on top. The surface 
of fresh eggs is like lime, that of stale eggs has a glossy 
appearance. 

Another way to ascertain the freshness of eggs is to 
fold your hand around one, hold it between the sun or a 
bright light and yourself and look through it. If the 
yolk appears round and the white surrounding it clear, 
it is fresh. An egg that is cloudy-looking or that has 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 97 

dark specks is stale. The shells should be dull-looking. 
Shiny and mottled eggs are no longer in their first youth. 
Those that are clear and translucent are the desirable 
ones. 

How to pack eggs. The yolk of the egg spoils much 
quicker than the white. For this reason it is important 
that the yolk should be surrounded with a layer of the 
white. If the egg is placed on side or large end the 
heavy yoke will settle to the bottom and come in contact 
with the shell, which admits the air. If it is placed on 
the small end it will always have a layer of white between 
it and the shell. Eggs absorb odors easily, therefore only 
odorless material should be used when packing them. 

The following method is a satisfactory way to store 
eggs. Place a small quantity of salt butter in the palm 
of the left hand and turn the ^gg around in it, so that 
every pore of the shell is closed ; then dry a sufficient 
quantity of bran in the oven. Pack the eggs with the 
small ends down in a layer of bran ; cover well with bran 
and do not let the shells touch each other ; then put in 
another layer of eggs, more bran, and so on until the 
crock is full. Keep the eggs in a cool, dry place. 

Eggs keep nicely packed in bran even if no butter is 
used. 

Packing eggs in dry salt is another good way to keep 
eggs. Put a layer of common salt in the bottom of the 
crock, about an inch deep ; grease the eggs with salted 
butter and place a layer of them in the salt with the small 



98 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

end down, leaving a space between the eggs and between 
the outer ones and the vessel. Fill the vacancies with salt 
and cover the eggs with salt about an inch deep as be- 
fore ; then place another layer of eggs. 

Eiderdo"wn. — When the fabric known as eiderdown 
becomes soiled it may be washed in the same way as fine 
flannels. Make strong suds of soap and warm water. 
Wash the garment in this, then wash in a weak suds, and 
finally rinse in warm water. When nearly dry, press on 
the wrong side. It is a great improvement to the gar- 
ment to brush it with a stiff clothes-brush after it has been 
ironed, brushing it the way of the nap. 

Emetic. — See Vomiting. 

Engravings. — To clean engravings, use stale bread. 
This will remove the dust and smoke. Cut all the crust 
from a stale loaf ; then cut the loaf into small cubes, and 
rub the engraving hghtly with these until all the dirt is 
removed. Yellow spots on the margins of engravings, 
when not very old, may be removed with starch and 
water. Wet the starch and cover the spots, then place 
in the sun. Several applications may be required to re- 
move the spots. These stains may be removed with 
chemicals, but a specialist must do the work, as in the 
hands of an amateur cheniicals are liable to destroy 
paper and print. 

Eyes. — I. For general weakness of the eyes or pass- 
ing local inflammation, the following will be found in- 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 99 

valuable. It is recommended by the best authorities. 
Place a. teaspoonful of powdered boric in a teacup ; add 
fifteen drops of spirits of camphor, rubbing to a smooth 
paste. Pour over it two-thirds of a cup of distilled water. 
Then strain and bottle. Apply with absorbent cotton, 
or, better still, use a glass eye-cup. 

2. In the treatment of iveak eyes, eyes that water 
when exposed to the cold, etc., immerse the forehead and 
nostrils in a basin of cold water. Breathe through the 
mouth, open the eyes under the water, and wink occa- 
sionally. Keep the eyes unmoved a minute or two, rest 
a few minutes and immerse again. Repeat every morn- 
ing and great benefit will follow. ^ 

It is also good for weak eyes to bathe them night and 
morning in a fairly strong solution of salt and water. 

3. Pure rose-water is good to use when bathing the 
eyes of a baby. The cloths and bits of cotton used 
should be destroyed. 

Eyebrows. — i. Smooth, glossy eyebrows, and long 
dark lashes add to the beauty of a face, and these neces- 
sary adjuncts to good looks should be well cared for. If 
the brows are thin, rub vaseline on them at night, bath- 
ing them carefully in the morning and then putting on a 
little petroleum. Never brush or rub the brows the 
wrong way. Brush them daily with a small brush and 
they will soon improve. 

2. To stimulate the ^rrowth and to improve the looks 
l.OFC. 



100 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

of the eyebrows : Two ounces of red vaseline ; one 
drachm of tincture of cantharides ; fifteen drops of oil of 
lavender; fifteen drops of oil of rosemary. Mix thor- 
oughly, and apply with a small tooth-brush night and 
morning. The improvement will soon be apparent. This 
pomade can be used on the eyelashes,, but must not 
be allowed to get into the eyes, since any oily preparation 
will inflame them. 

Eyelids and Lashes. — i. An excellent wash for 
red, tired eyelids is composed of a small quantity of 
sulphate of zinc dissolved in a quart of water. The eyes 
should be bathed in a little of this twice daily and gently 
dried with a soff rag. Obstinate cases of weak eyes have 
been cured with this wash. 

2. For granulated lids use : Salicylic acid, fifteen 
grains ; copper sulphate, fifteen grains ; cocaine, fifteen 
grains ; vaseline, three ounces. Mix thoroughly. Rub 
a little into the eyelids night and morning. Eyelashes 
may be improved by bathing them with a solution of 
rose-water every morning. A little powdered borax is also 
good, or even a still smaller quantity of carbonate of soda. 

Brushing the eyebrows and lashes every morning with 
a solution of green tea improves them. 

3. A good tonic for the lashes is a few drops of 
cologne in a little warm water. Castor oil is also good ; 
also plain vaseline or olive oil will stimulate the growth 
of the lashes. Do not get oil into the eyes. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES loi 

Foreign substances in the eye. Do not press or rub the 
eye. First try raising the lid by taking hold of the 
lashes and let the tears wash the particle out. If adhered 
to the lid turn back the lid with the finger and remove 
with a point made by twisting a handkerchief. Drawing 
the upper lid down over the lower lid sometimes proves 
effective. 

Roll soft paper up into a small twist, and wet the tip 
to remove the substance, or use a medicine dropper to 
draw it out. Rub the other eye. 

Try a small camel's hair brush dipped in water, pass it 
over the ball of the eye on raising the lid. 

For particles of dust or cinders in the eye try flaxseed 
if other attempts fail, or try it as soon as the intruding 
particle is felt. Place a few grains (two or three) in the 
outer corner of the eye. The flaxseed soon swells and 
exudes a glutinous substance that covers the ball of the 
eye and envelops any foreign substance that may be in it. 

Black Eye. — i. To prevent a bruised eye from be- 
coming discolored, apply at once and continuously for a 
time after the blow has been received the following 
lotion : Ammonium chloride, one-half ounce ; tincture 
of arnica, one ounce ; dilute acetic acid, two and a half 
ounces ; water, two and a half ounces. 

2. A black eye can be much improved by applying 
warm olive oil freely and without rubbing ; or absorbent 
cotton may be soaked in the oil and applied to the eye. 



102 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

If the skin is broken, boric acid should be applied over 
the abrasion. 

Puffiness under the eyes can sometimes be helped by 
the following massage treatment : Use both hands, place 
the finger-tips directly beneath the eyes, press gently 
around the outer corners and upward, following the 
contour of the eye. Give this movement fifty times a day. 
The eyes should be frequently relaxed. Close them and 
relax the muscles, if only for a few seconds at a time — 
minutes are better. Do not overwork nor strain the eyes. 

Face. — I. The following treatment is prescribed by a 
** beauty doctor." There are two good ways of wash- 
ing the face — one is with warm water and a little soap, 
the other is with fresh cream or milk. Cold water should 
be avoided and soap should be used sparingly. After 
the face has been washed it should be rinsed off in warm 
water. To this add a few drops of lemon juice. Dry 
the face again and then wash it off with a bit of absorbent 
cotton dipped in the following lotion : Borax, four grams ; 
chlorate of soda, two grams ; glycerine, fifty grams ; rose- 
water, 350 grams; alcohol, twenty grams; essence of 
roses, twenty drops. 

Bathe the face for about five minutes, and then let it 
dry without wiping. When the lotion has dried spread 
over the face a little fresh cold cream. Wipe it off 
gently, making it even, and leaving the skin more moist 
than greasy. Then use face powder freely. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 103 

2. The ordinary cheap scented soap is unfit to use on 
the face. The proper way to prepare a face bath is 
to fill a bowl with hot water, dip in it a flannel cloth, 
rub the soap on this until there is a thick lather ; pass it 
gently but briskly over the face. With both hands wash, 
the soap off, sponge with cooler water, dry on a soft 
towel, afterward using the palms of the hands to arouse 
circulation. After the face is thoroughly dry take some 
unguent on the fingers and begin the massage. One 
soon learns what is best for one's skin. Almond oil and 
cocoa butter are both softening and are easily and quickly 
absorbed. But no unguent should be used constantly or 
it will produce a light down on the face. In the morn- 
ing the face should be washed in hot water containing 
anything the skin may seem to demand. 

3. To whiten the complexion mix a handful of 
well-sifted wheat bran with a pint of white vinegar. Let 
stand for four hours. Add the yolks of five eggs. Put 
into a bottle and keep corked for fifteen days. This lotion 
may be applied to the face at night. 

4. A delicious preparation that makes the skin firm 
and white is made by mixing an ounce of the tincture of 
benzoin, a quart of rose, orange-flower or elder-flower 
water, and twenty drops of tincture of myrrh. A little 
of this is poured into a bowl of warm water, and the face 
washed in it every morning. 

5. Another excellent preparation for the face is made 
as follows : Borax, two drachms ; potassium carbonate, 



I04 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

one drachm : tragacanth powder, one drachm ; glycerine, 
two fluid ounces ; tincture of benzoin, two fluid drachms ; 
water, fourteen ounces. Dissolve the borax and potas- 
sium carbonate in the water, rub the tragacanth to a 
smooth paste with the glycerine, add the tincture of ben- 
zoin, incorporate thoroughly and gradually, then add the 
water to form a homogeneous mixture. Let stand for 
twenty-four hours and strain through cheese-cloth. 

6. For oily skin, bathe your face every morning in 
hot water. Dip the water in your hands, holding your 
face in them. Continue this until your skin feels almost 
scalded; then gradually reduce the temperature of the 
water until you have it cold. With a soft towel dry it 
carefully and the oily condition of the skin will soon 
disappear. 

7. The burning of the face that afflicts those having" 
delicate skins may be soothed by the use of a few drops 
of benzoin thrown into the water used for bathing the 
face. 

8. If the face is unjiaturally red apply through the 
day the following lotion: Tannic acid, fifteen grains; 
spirits of camphor, one tablespoonful ; rain water, half- 
pint. 

9. For bmiishing black spots an excellent ointment is 
made of flowers of sulphur, one teaspoonful ; rose-water, 
one pint; glycerine, one teaspoonful. If the specks are 
very obstinate and hard to remove the following prepara- 
tion should be used: Liquid ammonia, twenty drops; 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 105 

ether, one drachm ; soft soap, one ounce. Bathe the 
place affected with hot water and rub in a little of this 
mixture, then wash it off with hot water. See Black- 
heads. 

10. Enlarged pores can be done away with by the 
quick daily bath which will stimulate the functions of the 
skin. Use the complexion-brush to free the pores of the 
sebaceous matter that is clogging them. Every morning 
apply this wash : One and one-half ounces of cucumber 
juice, one and one-half ouiices of witch-hazel, three- 
fourths ounce of rose-water, one-half ounce of boro- 
glyceride, one- fourth ounce of oxide of zinc, one-half 
ounce of essence of rose. 

11. The little red blood veins which sometimes show 
in the face are often caused by exposure of the skin to 
strong cold winds. Applications of warm wet cloths 
until the skin feels soft and a gentle rubbing with good 
cold' cream into which a little witch-hazel has been beaten 
will remedy the trouble. 

12. Many women are troubled with pimples ^ rough- 
ness ajid spots of various kinds on the face. A good 
way to get rid of them is to take some simple medicine 
that cools the blood. The following is an excellent 
recipe : The juice of two lemons, one ounce of flowers 
of sulphur, one ounce of cream of tartar. Put into a jug 
and pour one quart of boiling water over, stirring thor- 
oughly. The dose for an adult is one wineglassful every 
morning for two weeks, half an hour before breakfast. 



io6 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

For a child, half a dose is sufficient. Epsom salts may 
be substituted for the sulphur if preferred. 

13. Another harmless lotion for cleaning and beauti- 
fying the complexion is : Lactic acid, two drachms ; 
glycerine, one-half ounce; essence of white rose, one 
and one-half drachms ; tincture of benzoin, one drachm ; 
water, sufficient to make six ounces. Mix the acid and 
glycerine with the water and add the rose extract and 
benzoin previously mixed. Apply to the face twice daily. 

14. To make the skin of the face smooth after it has 
been roughened by exposure or by mistreatment, and to 
make the flesh firm, the following treatment is recom- 
mended : Wash the face with soap in the morning. 
Then sponge it off in cold water mixed with a large table- 
spoonful of the following mixture to a quart of water : 
Powdered borax, 225 grains; sodium acetate, 225 
grains ; spirit of soap, five drachms ; tincture of benzoin, 
five drachms; glycerine, ten drachms; rose-water, 
twenty-one ounces ; oil of bergamot, four drops ; oil of 
rose, two ounces; spirit of orris, one and one-half 
drachms ; tincture of musk, three drops ; coumarin sugar, 
twelve grains. 

This douche should not last more than thirty seconds. 
In the afternoon apply the following lotion to the face 
with a bit of absorbent cotton, letting it dry without 
wiping: Borax, 150 grains; glycerine, five drachms; 
rose-water, fifteen ounces ; coumarin sugar, seven grains ; 
tincture of ambergis, three drops. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 107 

At night before retiring, wash the face with warm 
water and cologne or alcohol, using fifty drops of 
cologne or alcohol to a glass of water. Wipe the face 
off gently and put on a light layer of this pomade: 
Glycerite of starch, fifty grams ; zinc oxide, five grams ; 
tincture of benzoin, eight grams ; lanolin, thirty grams ; 
rose essence, ten drops. Leave the pomade on all night. 
See Complexion, Skin and Creams for additional in- 
formation. 

Fainting. — Fainting is caused by an interruption of the 
supply of blood to the brain. Immediately place the 
person who has fainted in a lying position, with the head 
lower than the feet. In this way consciousness often re- 
turns without other measures. The sitting position is 
very dangerous. People have died simply because the 
head was not lower than the body and feet. The head 
may be allowed to hang over the side of the couch or 
bed for a few minutes ; or a chair may be inverted and 
the patient placed on the back of it with the head down 
and the hips up. This causes the blood to return to the 
brain. Smelling salts may be held to the nose and heat 
applied over the heart to stimulate its action. Open a 
window or outer door to admit plenty of fresh air, and 
unfasten the clothing to allow free circulation. Cold 
water may be sprinkled upon the face, hands and chest. 
As soon as the patient is able to swallow a little fresh 
water or spirits and water may be given. 



io8 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

In severe cases when the faint continues long, a 
mustard paste may be placed over the heart ; if the 
breathing stops artificial respiration can be begun. If 
hands and feet are cold, apply hot bottles, and when the 
patient can swallow some stimulant may be given. The 
attack usually passes off in a few minutes, but the patient 
should lie still and be kept quiet for some time after it. 

Fatigue. — A glass of hot milk, when one is fatigued, 
is very refreshing and strengthening. 

Feathers. — i. To clean feathers^ pour boiling water 
on some white hard soap cut in small pieces, and to this 
add a little pearl ash. As soon as the soap is dissolved 
and the mixture is cool enough for the hand to bear, put 
the feathers into it and draw them through the hand 
until the dirt is squeezed out of them. Next pass them 
through a clean lather with a httle blue in it, and after- 
ward rinse in cold water with blue to give them a good 
color. Shake off the water, and dry them by shaking 
near the fire. Curl each feather separately, when 
perfectly dry, with a blunt knife or ivory paper folder, 
or hold the feather for an instant over glowing coals. 

2. Feather trimming which has been dampened 
should be shaken before a fire, or held over a stove or 
register, in the hot air, to restore the curl. It is said if 
a handful of coarse salt is thrown on a fire and the 
feathers held over it they will curl again. Each strand 
may be curled separately by drawing it over an ivory 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 109 

paper knife or the back of a steel knife, but it is a tedious 
process. 

3. To curl ostrich feathers^ shake them free from 
dust. Have a large kettle of water boiling rapidly and 
hold the feathers in the steam until they are heated 
through ; then shake them out in dry heat. Take a 
piece of real whalebone (it must be perfectly smooth) and 
curl the feathers with it by drawing the barbules over 
the edge, beginning at the quill, and taking only two or 
three barbules at a time. Be careful not to break the 
feathers while curling them. The plumes may also be 
curled by dipping them in water in which a little borax 
has been dissolved. Then curl over a knife or whalebone. 

4. To dye feathers black, it is best to use a good pre- 
pared dye. Wash the feathers in a pint of boiling water 
in which half a teaspoonful of soda has been dissolved ; 
then rinse and put in the dissolved dye, holding by the 
tips of the stems and moving them about. Rinse in cold 
water, dry between soft cloths and over a stove where 
they may be waved in the warm air. If the feathers 
come out too light a black add more dye. Curl over 
whalebone or the back of a knife after it has been heated 
slightly. 

5. Feathers may be bleached by being put into a bath 
of permanganate of potash, containing four to five parts 
permanganate to one thousand of water; a solution of 
sulphate of magnesia of the same strength is added, and 
it is heated 140° Fahrenheit at the most. The feathers, 



no RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

previously washed, are put into this bath, then taken out, 
rinsed, and passed through weak sulphuric acid ; then 
rinsed and dried. 

6. To clean feathers from their natural oil, steep 
them in one gallon of water mixed with one pound of 
lime, stir them well, then pour off the water and rinse the 
feathers in cold water. 

7. An easy and satisfactory way to renovate feather 
pillows is to hang them out in very cold weather, and let 
them freeze. Then transfer them to clean ticking and 
they will be found fresh and sweet. 

8. To purify feathers so that they can be used in pil- 
lows, etc., the following process should be used : Pre- 
pare a quantity of lime water by mixing one pound of 
quicklime in each gallon of water required, and let it 
stand until the undissolved lime has settled to the bot- 
tom of the vessel, then pour off the clear liquor for use. 
Put the feathers into a clean tub, pour the lime water on 
them, and stir them well until they all sink to the bottom. 
There should then be enough lime water to cover them to 
a depth of three inches. The feathers should remain in 
this for three or four days ; then be taken out and drained 
in a sieve, and afterward washed in clean water. Dry 
on a net, shaking the net occasionally to let the dry 
feathers fall through. When the feathers are dry, beat 
them well to get rid of the dust. 

Feet — I. Warm salt baths are the best cleansers and 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES in 

tonics for the feet, especially during cold weather. 
Bathe them once, or in case of excessive perspiration, 
twice a day in a foot-tub half full of lukewarm water into 
which a double handful of sea salt has been thrown. At' 
night before retiring, such a bath will remove the dust of 
the day and will soothe tired feet. Taken in the morn- 
ing and followed by a cold water shower it is a good 
tonic and prevents chilblains. 

The water should not be very hot, merely lukewarm. 
Once a week the foot-bath should consist of warm water 
and a good lather of soap. The feet ought to be rubbed 
with a ball of sandstone, while they are moist, and then 
dried with a rough towel and plenty of friction. If the 
joints are massaged with vaseline they will become more 
supple. 

After they have been bathed, the feet should be care- 
r illy dried between the toes. If there is a tendency there 
to soreness or to the formation of white skin, sprinkle 
freely with bismuth and place dry absorbent cotton be- 
tween the toes. This prevents soft corns. 

2. If the feet are painful, a strong solution of salt 
and water should be used at night, the feet remaining in 
until every trace of pain has vanished. A good treatment 
is then to sponge them off with cold water, and massage 
well ; a bandage saturated in a mixture of equal parts of 
witch-hazel, tannin and alcohol should be wrapped 
snugly about the feet and up around the ankles. In the 
morning the feet may be sponged off again with cold 



112 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

water and both shoes and stockings dusted with powder 
made by mixing together one part of salicyHc acid, two 
parts of boracic acid and two parts of talcum, which re- 
lieves pain and checks excessive or disagreeable perspira- 
tion. 

3. Tired feet are much refreshed by being bathed in 
hot water. Rubbing them with alcohol or witch-hazel is 
also restful especially for tender feet and often prevents 
perspiration. 

When the feet burn from long standing soak them in a 
basin of warm water in which two tablespoonfuls of bak- 
ing soda is dissolved. The warm alkaline fluid softens 
and relaxes the tissues and opens the pores, allowing the 
undue quantity of blood present in the feet to disperse. 
When the skin is tender, bathing it in alcohol strengthens 
it. 

A bath of linden leaves and water is also good for 
tired feet. 

4. The following powders are good for perspiring 
feet : (i) Tannin, thirty drachms; Lycopodium, 

three drachms ; alum, one drachm. (2) Oxide of zinc, 
one ounce ; starch, two ounces ; salicylic acid, one 
drachm ; talcum powder, seven ounces ; oil of winter- 
green, five drops. Mix well, adding the oil last. Dust 
in shoes and rub on feet. (3) One part of salicylic acid, 
two parts of boracic acid and two parts of talcum. (4) 
Salicylic acid, twenty grains ; boric acid, two drachms ; 
corn-starch, one ounce. Mix, and apply to the feet after 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 113 

bathing and wiping them. (5) Powdered boric 
sprinkled freely in the stockings is good for the feet. See 
also Corns, Chilblains and Bunions. 

Fire. — i. When clothing is on fire, throw the person 
down, wrap in a rug, blanket, anything to smother the 
flames. Roll on the floor until flames are extinguished. 
Keep the flames as much as possible from the face, and 
prevent hot air from entering the lungs. In making 
escape from burning building keep the face as near the 
floor as possible, as there is less smoke. If possible wrap 
wet cloth about the mouth and nostrils. After extin- 
guishing the fire remove all the clothing near the burned 
part, by cutting with shears or knife. Do not open the 
blisters. If cloth adheres to the skin soften with water 
before trying to remove it. See Burns. 

2. When the chimney is cold it is often difficult to 
light a fire without making a great deal of smoke. To 
prevent this, burn a few pieces of paper in the chimney 
or smoke flue and thus start an upward current. The 
fire will then burn without any more trouble. 

3. To extinguish the flame of petroleum or gasoline, 
smother it with a rug, cloth, carpet or wet cloth. Or it 
may be extinguished by throwing on earth or sand. 
Don't use water ; it will spread the flames. 

Fish-bone. — A method of procedure to remove a fish- 
bone lodged in the throat consists in tying a string in the 
eye of a smooth button and' having the patient swallow 



114 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

the button edgewise. The button is then drawn back 
by the string, thus dislodging the bone. 

Fits. — This means either apoplexy or epilepsy. Apo- 
plexy is attended with insensibility. The patient falls, 
generally, but not always, grows purple in the face, and 
breathes in a snoring manner. There is paralysis of one 
side, and the mouth is drawn to one side. Place patient 
in bed, with head raised. If hot, apply cold water to 
head and send for doctor. 

In epilepsy, patient usually gives a scream, becomes 
deadly pale, falls on his face, becomes convulsed, and 
then profoundly insensible. While in this state, all that 
need be done is to loosen the clothing, and keep patient 
quiet and beyond danger of hurting himself until sensi- 
bility returns. It is then a case for medical treatment. 

Fixtures. — See Iron. 

Flannels. — i. To wash flannels perfectly. Shave 
a quarter of a pound of soap into a granite saucepan, add 
one quart of boiling water, stir over the fire until dis- 
solved. Pour this into a tub half- filled with water at a 
temperature of ioo° Fahrenheit. Mix well. Have on 
the left side of the tub a bucket of clear, warm water, 
into which put a half- teaspoon ful of ammonia. Take 
each piece of flannel singly and immerse it in the suds. 
Soap should never be rubbed on flannels, nor should 
flannels ever be rubbed on a board. Wash them by 
pressing and drawing through the hands, rubbing the 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 115 

soiled places quickly with the hands. Rinse at once in 
clear water, and wring by pressing one hand under the 
other, or by passing through a wringer. Never twist in 
the wringing. Shake well and hang to dry immediately ; 
then proceed to wash the second piece. The flannels, 
when nearly dry, must be taken from the line and pressed 
with a hot iron. Be careful, however, that it is not too 
hot or it will injure the color. ' Flannels washed in this 
way retain their soft texture and original size until worn 
out. 

For colored flannels make suds as above. To the 
warm water for rinsing add four tablespoonfuls of white 
wine vinegar, or a bit of acetic acid thoroughly dissolved. 
It is always well to wait for a bright day before washing 
flannels. Dry them as quickly as possible. 

2. White flannels should be treated in this way : 
Shake them to remove the dust. Prepare warm water at 
about 100° Fahrenheit. Add sufficient melted soap to 
make a lather, and a few drops of ammonia to soften the 
water and remove grease. Squeeze the articles gently 
in the water between the hands, but do not rub them ; 
turn them and repeat the process until they are perfectly 
clean. Rinse in warm water until all soap is removed. 
Fold and pass them through a wringer two or three times. 
Shake them well ; and dry them in the open air, if possi- 
ble hanging them up by the thickest part. For colored 
garments the ammonia should be omitted, as it may afl'ect 
the color. Salt may be added to the rinsing water, as it 



ii6 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

assists in retaining the color. One tablespoonful of vine- 
gar may be used to brighten the colors. Borax in the 
suds prevents white flannels from turning yellow. 

3. To wash a flannel waist use warm Castile or ivory 
suds, squeezing the cloth gently between the hands. 
Rinse thoroughly in lukewarm water and dry quickly. 
Iron over a pad of flannel and do not use too hot an 
iron. 

4. Blue flannel should be washed without soap, in 
bran and water, with a handful of salt in the water to set 
the color. Soft water should always be used, or use a 
little borax to make hard water soft. 

5. The proper way to iron flannels is to spread them 
on an ironing-board, cover them with a slightly damp 
cloth, and iron over this, pressing down heavily. The 
iron must not be too hot. 

6. To shrink flannel before making it up into gar- 
ments, soak it for a few minutes in warm water, then rub 
some good white soap into a good lather ; dip it in the 
suds or knead it up and down ; do not rub. Rinse in 
warm water. Hot water should never touch flannel. 
Wring carefully and dry slowly in open air, never before 
a fire. 

7. A weak solution of bisulphite of sodium to which 
a little hydrochloric acid has been added may be used 
to bleach flannel that has become yellow with use. 

Flatirons. — i. Rusty flatirons can be made as 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 117 

smooth as glass with beeswax and salt. Tie a lump of 
wax in a rag; when the irons are hot, rub them first 
with the wax rag, then scour by rubbing on a cloth 
sprinkled with salt. 

2. One of the most satisfactory ways to keep flatirons 
smooth while working is to have a pan lined with thick 
brown paper, putting upon this paper a thick layer of 
common salt. Rub the hot iron on this salt, using good 
pressure, then wipe on clean cloth. 

When ironing starched clothes have a piece of bees- 
wax in a cloth, and, after cleaning the iron on the salt, 
pass the wax lightly over it and wipe with a clean cloth. 

3. To prevent flatirons from becoming rusty when 
not in use, rub them with sweet oil or kerosene. 

Fleas. — I. To banish fleas spray the infested places 
with the following preparation : Put two ounces of oil 
of bay and four ounces of ether into a bottle. Into an- 
other bottle put fourteen ounces of alcohol and four 
ounces of oil of eucalyptus. Let these stand for two 
hours, shaking occasionally, then strain through a 
piece of cheese-cloth into a large bottle. Use this with 
an atomizer, spraying the localities in the room where 
the fleas are. 

2. Clean the room with carbolic acid water, injecting 
it into the cracks and ledges, and sweeping the floor or 
carpet with it, and wiping everything with a sponge 
wrung out of carbolic water. 



ii8 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

3. A thorough treatment of the room with naphtha, 
taking the carpets and upholstered furniture out of doors 
and saturating them with naphtha will get rid of 
fleas. Sometimes a thorough sweeping, dusting and air- 
ing are all that is required to rid a room of these 
pests. 

4. A bath in creolin will rid dogs and cats of fleas. 
For dogs use four teaspoons of creolin to a quart of 
water; for cats two teaspoons. Apply with the hands 
or a brush, or the animal may be submerged in the 
mixture for five minutes. 

Flies. — I. Fumigation is an effective remedy for the 
nuisance of flies and mosquitoes. Use an iron spider and 
either charcoal or live coals. Twice a day fumigate 
thoroughly. Use camphor and mix with it a little laven- 
der or a little dried pennyroyal. A good mixture for 
fumigation is equal parts of camphor, dried pennyroyal, 
lavender and incense. The rooms should be tightly 
closed while the fumigating is being done. 

2. A good compound to burn in a room is made by 
mixing one part of benzoin, one part of balsam tolu, five 
parts charcoal, one and a half parts common insect pow- 
der and a half part saltpeter. Add sufiicient water to 
this mixture to knead it into a stiff" paste. Then roll the 
mixture into pastils and dry them. One of these pastils 
burned in a room will destroy the flies and mosquitoes 
without injury to furniture or curtains. See also Fly 
Lotion, Fly Paper and Fly Poison. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 119 

Floor. — I. To fill cracks in floors any one of the 
following preparations may be used : (a) Dissolve one 
pound of glue in two gallons of water. Stir into this 
enough fine sawdust to make a thick paste and fill the 
cracks with it. The paste may be colored to match the 
wood, (d) Fill the cracks with putty. One can buy 
the putty or can make it by mixing whiting and linseed 
oil together and kneading it until the paste is smooth. 
The putty may be colored to match the wood. (^) Soak 
finely shredded paper in water^ and boil it until it is a 
soft pulp, and to every fwo gallons add one pound of 
glue. The cracks must be filled solid and even with the 
boards. 

2. Hardwood floors ^ if polished with shellac or var- 
nish, may be first washed with soap and water, and then 
thoroughly rubbed with a cloth wet with oil and turpen- 
tine or kerosene and water j this will make them look as 
well as when new. 

3. Waxed floors should not be cleaned with water. 
Wet a woolen cloth with turpentine and rub the soiled 
places with it. When the floor is all cleaned go over it 
with a woolen cloth slightly moistened with soft wax. 
Let it rest for a few hours, then polish with a weighted 
brush. Spots caused by water may be obliterated on 
waxed woodwork by rubbing with oil. 

4. An oiled floor may be cleaned by rubbing with 
crude petroleum or kerosene. It may also be washed with 
hot soap-suds, always taking care to rub it perfectly dry. 



I20 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

5 . Painted 07- varnished floors can be kept in good 
condition by wiping with a damp cloth and then rubbing 
with a dry woolen cloth. If the floor is wiped clean once 
a month with a cloth wrung out of warm water, then 
rubbed with a cloth wet with kerosene, and finally 
rubbed with a coarse woolen cloth, it will remain bright 
and handsome for years. Very dirty floors may be 
scrubbed with soap and water. Skim milk also is good 
for cleaning floors. 

6. A dirty unpainted floor may be cleansed and 
bleached by the use of one poiind of common wash soda 
and one pound of quicklime mixed with one gallon of 
boiling water. Saturate the floor with the solution, 
sprinkle clean sharp sand over it, and scrub with soap 
and water. Paint and grease spots are quickly removed, 
and the floor is made clean and white. 

A greasy floor may be greatly improved by a thorough 
scrubbing with soap and sand, followed by a bath of 
ammonia water. 

7. Two and a half pounds paraffin and one gallon of 
turpentine, dissolved by the aid of gentle heat, make a 
good dressing for a painted floor. Apply it with a 
sponge or piece of flannel while warm. Let it remain on 
twenty-four hours ; then polish. A beautiful gloss equal 
to varnish is the result. 

8. Grease spots on a7i U7ipainted floor can be re- 
moved by a solution of soda and water. Dissolve a gill 
of washing soda in a quart of boiling water. Pour this 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 121 

boiling hot on the spots and rub with a broom ; then 
wipe with a long handled mop, being careful not to let 
your hands or clothing touch the liquid. Wash 
thoroughly with hot water and wipe dry. See Staining 
for formulas for stains for floors and woodwork. 

Flowers. — i. A florist gives the following recipe for 
preserving cut flowers : Sprinkle the flowers lightly with 
fresh water ; then put them into a vessel containing some 
soap-suds. Take the flowers out of the suds every 
morning and lay them sidewise in fresh water, the stock 
entering first into the water. Keep them there a minute 
or two, then take them out and sprinkle lightly with fresh 
water. Replace the flowers in the suds and they will 
bloom as fresh as when gathered. The soap-suds need to 
be changed every third day. This procedure is 
said to keep flowers bright and beautiful at least a 
month. 

2. Flowers can be kept fresh a long time by putting 
a little sal ammoniac, saltpeter, carbonate of soda, or 
camphor into the water. Flowers that have already 
wilted are said to revive quickly if the stems are placed 
in a weak camphor water. 

3. When flowers begin to droop, place the stems an 
inch deep in hot water and let them remain two or three 
minutes ; then cut ofl" as much of the stem as was in the 
hot water ; place in clear cold water again. Repeat this 
process each morning. 



122 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

Give cut flowers fresh water daily and do not keep 
them in an overheated room. 

Fly Lotion. — An excellent lotion to keep flies and 
mosquitoes off horses is made of: Carbolic acid, one 
ounce; oil of pennyroyal, two ounces; spirits of camphor, 
two ounces; glycerine, two ounces; oil of tar, four 
ounces ; lard oil, four ounces. Mix ; saturate a cloth or 
sponge with the lotion and rub over the horse. 

Fly Paper. — If sticky fly paper comes in contact with 
clothing, cleanse the spot with alcohol, then wash and 
press. If the fly paper gets against furniture or wood- 
work, clean the spot first with kerosene oil, rub with a 
woolen cloth dipped in linseed oil, then rub dry. 

Fly Poison. — i . Arsenate of potassa, one ounce ; red 
lead, one-fourth ounce; sugar, five ounces. Mix well 
together, bottle and label Poison. 

Put a suitable quantity on plates, moisten with water 
and place where flies are thickest. It is very poisonous 
and very destructive. 

2. One drachm of white arsenic dissolved in a pint 
of water and sweetened with sugar, molasses or honey, 
makes a good poison. 

Fly Specks. — Fly specks may be removed from an 
oil painting by dipping the finger in warm water and 
rubbing gently on the soiled spot. When all the spots 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 123 

are removed, wipe the picture with a soft cloth wrung 
out of warm water. 

To remove fly specks from the frame or from moulding 
dampen a soft sponge with warm alcohol or old ale and 
wash the frame with it, passing the sponge lightly over 
the gilding. The frame should not be wiped. 

Freckles. — No positive cure has been found for 
freckles, because they are produced by an unequal distri- 
bution of the pigment of the skin. They can, however, 
be toned down by the use of lotions, of which there are 
many. The following are among the best. 

1 . Lactic acid, four ounces ; glycerine, two ounces ; 
rose-water, one ounce. Apply several times daily with a 
bit of soft linen. Use a cold cream afterward. 

2. Two drachms of powdered sal ammoniac, four 
fluid drachms of eau de cologne, one quart of distilled 
water. 

3. Jamaica rum, two ounces; lemon juice, two 
ounces. 

4. One wineglass lemon juice, one pint rain water, 
five drops essence of rose. 

5. Lavender water, two drachms; muriate of am- 
monia, three-fourths drachm; distilled water, eight 
ounces. 

6. Sulphocarbolate of zinc, one ounce; glycerine, 
twelve ounces; rose-water, twelve ounces ; alcohol, three 



124 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

ounces ; spirits of neroli, one-half drachm. Mix ; apply- 
twice a day, leaving on one hour. 

7. One drachm ammonium chloride; four ounces 
distilled water. Mop on the face. 

8. Lemon juice, three ounces ; vinegar, one ounce ; 
rose-water, one ounce; bay-rum, one ounce. Apply 
several times a day. 

9. Sulphocarbolate of zinc, fifteen grains ; glycerine, 
four drachms; rose-water, three ounces; alcohol, two 
drachms ; cologne, fifteen drops ; spirits of camphor, 
fifteen drops. Mix by dissolving the zinc salt in the 
glycerine and rose-water, and add the other ingredients. 
Apply the lotion twice daily, letting it dry on the face. 

10. A simple home remedy for freckles on the face 
of a child is to bathe the freckles two or three times a 
day with buttermilk. A stronger lotion for the same 
purpose is one part of lactic acid to twenty parts of water. 

Rubbing a child's face with lemon juice before the 
child goes into the open air is said to prevent freckles 
and sunburn. 

11. See under Face; also Creams and Complexion. 

Frost-bites. — i. Spirits of turpentine and sulphuric 
acid, each one-fourth ounce ; olive oil, one and one-fourth 
ounces ; mix ; shake and apply frequently. The frost 
should be extracted by the application of ice water or 
snow, but never by artificial heat. 

2. Powdered camphor, one and one-half drachms; 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 125 

lanolin, one ounce; vaseline, one ounce; hydrochloric 
acid, one drachm. Apply at night. 

3. Pure oil of peppermint is said to cure frost-bites. 
Rub it in well. See Chilblains. 

• Fruit Stains. — See Stains. 

Fumigation. — See Disinfection. 

Furniture. — i. Raw linseed oil and spirits of tur- 
pentine, in the proportions of two-thirds oil and one of 
turpentine, is the model furniture reviver. The wood 
should be first wiped off with a dry soft cloth. The oil 
may then be applied with a soft brush, wiping off with 
a soft cloth, and rubbing thoroughly dry. Under this 
treatment polished furniture retains a fresh appearance. 

2. To restore polished furniture mix together one 
part of alcohol and three parts of sweet oil. Rub this 
on the furniture with a piece of soft flannel ; then polish 
off also with soft flanneL 

3. Two parts of sweet oil and one of turpentine 
make a good polish to remove finger marks. 

4. A good polish. Melt together one pound of resin, 
one-half pound old, clean grease, one-half pint of spirits 
of turpentine, one-half pint of kerosene. Apply with a 
woolen rag. Dries hard and glossy in a few minutes. 

5. Another good polish. Linseed oil and old ale, 
each one-half pint ; the white of one ^gg^ beaten ; alco- 
hol and muriatic acid, each one ounce. Mix ; shake 



126 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

the polish and apply with a flannel cloth ; rub to a 
finish with an old silk handkerchief. 

6. To remove stains from and to polish furniture. 
Alcohol, one pint; ground resin, one-half ounce; gum 
shellac, one and one -half ounces. After the resin and 
shellac are cut in the alcohol, mix in linseed oil, one 
pint ; shake thoroughly. Apply with a soft rag, and 
polish with flannel or silk handkerchief. 

7. To clean polished furniture. Spread paraffine 
oil on the soiled woodwork, and let it stand for an hour 
or more to soften the dirt, then wash with soap and warm 
water, and wipe dry. Next rub on a mixture of paraffine 
oil and turpentine — one-third turpentine and two-thirds 
oil. Polish with soft old flannel. Let it rest an hour or 
two, then polish with soft old linen. If the surface is 
very dull, dirty, and scratched, instead of washing with 
soap and water add more oil and sprinkle powdered rot- 
tenstone over it. Rub gently and regularly, first with a 
circular motion and then with the grain of the wood. 
When the surface is smooth and bright wipe off the rot- 
tenstone and finish as you would after washing with the 
soap and water. 

8. An excellent method of cleaning aiid polishing 
furniture. Put into a wide-mouthed bottle, in the or- 
der named, the following articles : One gill each of 
powdered tripoli, powdered rottenstone, cold drawn lin- 
seed oil, turpentine, naphtha, a strong solution of oxalic 
acid, half a gill of alcohol and three gills of cold water. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 1 27 

Shake well and keep well corked. To use : Pour a 
little on a piece of an old felt hat, and rub the furniture 
with a circular motion, being careful not to press so hard 
as to cut through the varnish. Finish by rubbing with 
the grain of the wood. Clean off the polished surface; 
then go over it with a soft cloth and a dressing made of 
one pint of paraffine oil, half a gill of turpentine and 
half a gill of alcohol. Let the oiled surface remain un- 
disturbed for an hour ; then rub quite briskly with a 
piece of soft, old linen. 

9. Bruises and indentations in furniture may be 
taken out in the following manner : Wet the part with 
warm water, double a piece of brown paper five or six 
times, soak it and lay it on the place \ apply on that a 
hot flatiron until the moisture is evaporated. If the 
bruise be not gone, repeat the process. After two or 
three applications the dent or bruise will be raised. 

If the bruise be small, merely soak it with warm water 
and apply a red hot poker very near the surface ; keep 
it continually wet, and in a few minutes the bruise will 
disappear. Then polish the spot. 

10. Scratches may be removed from polished furni- 
ture by rubbing with a woolen rag saturated with boiled 
linseed oil. Shellac dissolved in alcohol may then be 
used as a varnish. 

1 1 . Dim spots and finger _ marks can be removed by 
rubbing them vigorously with a silk handkerchief, old 
and well-worn, moistened with a little oil and turpentine. 



128 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

Furs. — I. Dark furs may be cleaned with bran or 
with cedar, mahogany or other hardwood sawdust, which 
has been heated in an oven. Beat the fur gently with a 
switch until free from dust, then lay on a table with the 
fur side up, and rub the hot sawdust or bran through 
the fur. Use plenty of sawdust and rub vigorously. 
After this, place the garment upon one or two feather 
pillows or cushions, with the fur side down, and beat well 
until all the sawdust or bran is out of the fur. Then 
hang the garment where the air can blow through it. 

2. If a fur collar is greasy at the back of the neck, 
rub it with a bit of cotton batting wet with gaso- 
line. 

3. White furs are cleaned in the same manner as 
dark except that white corn-meal is used instead of saw- 
dust. The corn-meal should be heated. 

Soiled places may be cleaned by being rubbed with 
cube magnesia. Allow the powder from the magnesia to 
remain in the fur for a day, then brush the fur and shake 
the garment thoroughly. 

4. To protect furs from moths during the summer 
they must either be made and kept air-tight or be* aired 
in the sun every week. Before packing furs away brush 
them well the wrong way of the fur, hang in the sun for 
two or three days, brush again and examine closely sev- 
eral times to make sure there are no moth eggs in the 
hair. Wrap each garment up in old cloth ; put in a box 
that has been aired in the sun ; wrap stout paper around 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 129 

it, lapping the edges and gluing them together. Place 
the box on a shelf in a dry place. 

Garbage. — i. The best way to dispose of garbage is 
to use a pipe incinerator, and put in it the dry garbage 
each night. In the morning the charcoal thus made 
may be used for fuel. 

2. If a garbage can is used it should be scalded 
thoroughly every time it is emptied, and some disin- 
fectant, such as chloride of lime, should be added. The 
bottom of the can should be lined with newspapers, and 
each collection of garbage should be wrapped in news- 
papers. The results are a clean can, no odor and fewer 
flies. 

Gargle. — i. A gargle is a wash for the throat. 
Gargles are applied by allowing a small mouthful to run 
over the affected parts, by holding the head backward, 
•and breathing through it, by which means the liquid is 
agitated and its action promoted. Gargles should not 
be swallowed. 

2. An excellent gargle for the throat is a simple 
solution of salt and water. Many cases of throat 
affection naight be cured by the use of this alone, if only 
taken in time, gargling every hour or half hour as the 
need warrants. 

3. For sore throat, tonsilitis, sore mouth, and for 
cleansing the mouth in diphtheria, scarlet and typhoid, 
the following medicinal gargle is recommended : 



130 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

'I'hymol, four grains ; benzoic acid, one and one-half 
drachms ; tincture of eucalyptus, three drachms ; water, 
one and a half pints. Take about one tablespoonful into 
the mouth, gargle thoroughly, and hold in the mouth for 
several minutes, before spitting out. 

Gasoline. — If gasoline leaves a ring after it has been 
used to remove grease spots, the defect can be remedied 
by covering with fuller's earth. Rewet the spot with 
gasoline, and while it is damp apply the remedy. 

Gilt. — 1. To clean gilt frames dissolve one table- 
spoonful of washing soda in half a pint of hot water, and 
when this solution is cold add half a pint of lime water. 
Wash the frames gently with a sponge wet in this hquid, 
then sponge off with cold water. Dry with cotton 
batting. The work must be done carefully. Clean only 
a part of the frame at a time, and do not have the 
sponges very wet. 

2. Gilt frames and other articles are often disfigured 
by fly marks. If such articles are brushed over with 
water in which three or four onions have been boiled, 
flies will not touch them. Such a simple remedy is 
surely worth a trial. 

3. Albumen will remove most of the specks from gilt 
frames. Beat the white of an egg with about two table- 
spoonfuls of cold water. Then with a soft brush 
moisten one side of the frame. Then take a piece of soft 
silk and wipe it perfectly dry. So continue until the 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 131 

entire frame is cleaned. If the frames are very old it 
may be best to regild them. 

Glass. — I. Glassware will last longer and look 
better if the following hints as to its care are regarded. 
Tepid water, the best pure white soap, and a stiff brush 
are the first essentials. After washing and rinsing place 
the cut glass in boxwood sawdust. This will absorb the 
moisture in the cutting. Next remove the sawdust from 
the plain surfaces with a soft cloth. By following these 
directions the original clearness and sparkle of the glass 
will be maintained. 

Shot should not be used in carafes, cruets, toilet and 
similar articles. It is very apt to scratch the glass, and 
thus mar its beauty. Prosaic potato peelings are good 
aids. Let them remain in the glassware over night, then 
rinse out with tepid water. A very important point is to 
avoid sudden changes from extreme heat to extreme cold, 
and vice versa. A pitcher or tumbler that has been 
filled with ice water, a tray that has been used for ice 
cream, if plunged at once into hot water will be apt to 
crack. Use lukewarm water and the risk of breakage is 
avoided. 

2. Glassware should be washed in water cool enough 
to bear the hand in comfortably. Make it soapy with 
Ciistile or other white soap. Have a second dish of clear 
water, of the same temperature, in which to rinse the 
dishes. Wash each piece carefully, rubbing with a soft 



132 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

cloth, then rinse and wipe dry. In washing glassware 
lay three or four thicknesses of a towel on the bottom of 
the pan, which will make a soft support for the glass and 
render it less apt to be broken. It is best to wash only 
a few pieces at a time. A brush should be used to 
cleanse the cutting. A little bluing added to the water 
in which the glass is rinsed will make the crystal more 
brilliant. The glass should be rubbed gently to a polish. 
Linen towels are best for wiping. 

3. To wash a glass from which milk has been 
poured, plunge first into cold water before putting it 
into warm. 

Glasses (Spectacles) can be most easily cleaned and 
made perfectly clear by dropping on each glass a drop 
or two of alcohol, and then rubbing with soft cloth. 
Globes that are smoked and dirty may be cleansed by 
soaking them in hot water to which a little sal soda or 
borax has been added. Scrub with a brush, rinse in 
clear water and wipe dry. Ammonia is also good to 
use. 

Gloss on a black garment may be removed by shak- 
ing and brushing the garment free from dust, and then 
sponging it with ammonia water. Dry quickly. 

Gloves. — I. Kid gloves are most satisfactorily 
cleaned with benzine or naphtha, purified benzine or rose 
oil being preferable. The gloves may be put on the 
hands, rubbed with flannel dipped in the cleansing 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 133 

fluid, and then wiped dry with a clean piece of white 
flannel. Renaove the gloves and hang them in the air to 
dry. 

The gloves may also be cleaned as follows : Place 
them in the benzine and let them soak thoroughly; 
then place them on a clean board or large platter, rub 
them one way only, toward the ends of the fingers, with 
a soft brush or sponge. Clean all parts alike, using 
the cleaning fluid freely ; then dry, if possible, over a 
wooden hand, or on smooth sticks made to resemble 
fingers inserted in each finger of the gloves. When dry, 
polish with French white powder. Keep the gloves 
smooth during the process and put them upon the hands 
occasionally while drying to prevent shrinking. 

Gasoline, benzine or naphtha will do the work. 

2. Another way to clean kid gloves is to use a strong 
solution of pure soap in hot milk beaten up with the yolk 
of one egg to a pint of the solution. A little ether may 
be added to the fluid. Put the glove on the hand and 
rub it gently with the solution, then dry carefully. Fold 
and press between paper with a warm iron. White 
gloves are not discolored by this treatment, and are made 
clean and soft. 

3. Light undressed kid gloves can be cleaned with 
cracker crumbs. Prepare a generous quantity of the 
crumbs; button the gloves upon the hands and rub 
thoroughly with the crumbs. 

4. Suede or undressed gloves may also be cleaned 



134 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

with corn-meal ; rub it over them, and then use a clean 
piece of white flannel. 

5. To clean chamois or castor gloves rub the parts 
most soiled with magnesia. Then wash them on the 
hands in a lather of Castile or ivory soap and warm water. 
Rinse in warm and then in cold water that contains a 
little soap. Keep them on the hands until nearly dry, 
then dry in the air. 

6. Ati excellent cleansing fluid to use in cleaning 
kid gloves is composed of a pint of deodorized benzine, 
half a drachm of sulphuric ether, half a drachm of chloro- 
form, one drachm of alcohol and enough cologne to 
make a satisfactory mixture. Clean the gloves on the 
hands with this, using a sponge, and rubbing partly dry 
with a piece of flannel. 

7. To wash silk gloves : Put the gloves on the hands 
and fasten at the wrists. Have ready a bowlful of warm 
suds made of white soap and a teaspoonful of borax. 
Dip a nail brush in the suds and go over the gloves care- 
fully. Rinse while on the hands, remove and dry. 

8. Stains are removed from colored gloves by sus- 
pending them for twelve hours in an atmosphere of 
ammonia. To do this use a tall glass jar in the bottom 
of which pour some strong aqua ammonia, without 
spattering any of it on the sides of the jar. Suspend the 
gloves to the stopper of the jar. They must not come 
in contact with ammonia. Leave the gloves in the 
bottle twelve hours. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 135 

9. When black kid gloves are soiled or turned white 
in spots, wet the spots with black ink appUed by means 
of a bit of flannel on a toothpick ; then, mix a few 
drops of ink and sweet-oil or vaseline in a small dish, 
and with the flannel, rub the mixture over the gloves. 
Dry \ and then polish on the hand with soft flannel. 

Undressed kid gloves cannot be treated this way, only 
glace. 

10. Women whose hands are inclined to perspire 
find it difficult to get gloves on. A little French chalk 
sprinkled over the fingers before inserting into the glove 
will facilitate the operation. 

Glue. — I. A good glue for domestic purposes is 
made in the following manner : Soak half an ounce of 
glue and half an ounce of isinglass for twelve hours in 
one pint of cold water. Put this in a glue-pot with one 
gill of vinegar, and place in hot water. Add a table- 
spoonful of salt to the hot water. Stir the glue frequently 
while it is dissolving. Use it very hot. If there are 
particles of old glue clinging to the wood be sure to 
remove them. As it injures glue to heat it often make 
only a small quantity at a time. 

2. Another receipt for glue is : Take equal parts of 
shellac and rosin, and, after melting them together, add 
an amount equal to both of carbolic acid crystals. 

3. Liquid glue, always ready for use, is made as 
follows : Put into a glass jar finely broken glue of the 



136 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

best quality ; then fill it with acetic acid. Set the jar 
thus filled in a water bath, which must be heated gradually 
and kept hot until the glue is all dissolved. 

Grass Stains. — To remove grass stains saturate the 
spots with kerosene, and then wash in the usual way. 

Alcohol will remove grass stains. These stains must 
be taken out before the garment is washed, as washing 
makes them indelible. Soak the spots with alcohol, wash 
in warm suds. Brush the spots well with the alcohol 
and pay particular attention to them in the wash. Dry 
in the sun or on the grass. 

Grease Spots.— i. A most effective remover of 
grease spots that resist hot water and soap is : Benzine, 
one pint ; chloroform, one-half ounce ; ether, one 
drachm ; oil of bergamot, ten drops. Rub on the 
spot with a sponge or piece of cloth. Do not work near 
a flame or fire, as the fluid is explosive. 

2. To remove a grease spot from woolen goods v^^X. 
it with benzole or turpentine, and put a piece of blotting 
paper under the spot and another over it. Press with a 
warm iron. First wet a circle just outside the grease 
spot with the benzole, benzine, gasoline or turpentine, 
and continue wetting, moving toward the spot of grease 
until that is reached. Never' start by wetting from the 
center of the grease spot, and do not rub the grease 
over a larger area. Use blotting papers, as above directed, 
on any woolen fabric. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 137 

3. Grease spots inay be removed from any delicate 
color with French chalk. Scrape this 011 the spots and 
rub it in ; then allow it to remain for twenty-four hours, 
brush off lightly, and if the grease has not entirely dis- 
appeared, repeat the work. 

4. Fuller's earth will remove grease spots from silk. 
Spread the garment or fabric on a smooth surface, put 
the fuller's earth on the spots, rubbing it in well. Let 
the powder remain for twenty-four hours; then cover 
it with a piece of brown paper, and press with a warm 
flatiron. Remove the paper and brush off the fuller's 
earth. Repeat, if necessary. 

Hair. — i. To keep the hair in good condition it is 
necessary not only to brush it with clean brushes and 
regularly, but to give it frequent shampooing so that 
every particle of dust may be removed from it. The 
soft, fluffy look of the hair, and its beautiful gloss after 
having been shampooed, shows. how grateful it is for the 
treatment given it. The frequency of the shampoo must 
be determined by the condition of the hair. Ordinarily 
once a week is not too often ; in some cases once in two 
weeks is sufficient to keep the hair clean. Absolute 
cleanliness is necessary, and the hair should have daily 
ventilation. 

To cleanse the scalp and the hair use hot water 
made ''soap-sudsy" with tar soap; use a nail brush, 
upon which the soap has been rubbed, to scrub the scalp 



138 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

thoroughly, and after every part of the scalp is washed 
rinse the hair and heat with baths of water, the first be- 
ing the temperature of that used for washing the hair, 
and the last ordinarily cool, the baths between having 
been gradually graded. The rinsing should be continued 
until all the soap is removed from the hair. For the 
first rubbing use a thick, hard Turkish towel, and after 
that rub the hair and the head with ordinary towels. 
Ladies will find it advantageous to warm the towels be- 
fore using them as they will dry the hair more quickly 
than towels not warmed. The hair should not be put up 
until it is perfectly dry or it will remain damp for a long 
time and have an undesirable mouldy smell about it. 

2. A hair specialist prescribes the following treat- 
ment for the hair : Ventilate and shake it daily 
to rid it of dust and dirt; then use the following 
scalp wash as often as required. Extract of witch-hazel, 
one pint ; eau de cologne, eight ounces ; chloroform, 
three drachms. Apply the lotion with a sponge, going 
over the entire scalp two or three times. When entirely 
dry, brush the hair with quick downward strokes, and 
soon a fine gloss will appear ; use a very soft clean brush 
and take care not to touch the scalp. 

3. Shampooing the hair : Take a cake of pure white 
floating soap, place it in a quart vessel and pour over it a 
pint of boiling water ; agitate about five minutes or un- 
til a strong lather is formed ; remove the soap, and when 
the liquid has cooled to lukewarm, saturate the scalp 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 139 

thoroughly and manipulate with the finger-tips, going 
over the scalp several times. Pour the remainder of the 
liquid over the long hair, washing it as one would a 
piece of cloth; rinse with warm water, using a bath 
spray. Part the hair and spray the scalp, particularly at 
each side of the head ; dry with warm towels and allow 
the hair to become perfectly dry. It will then be ex- 
ceedingly fluffy. 

If the scalp is very oily put a teaspoonful of bicarbon- 
ate of soda in the vessel with the soap ; if, on the con- 
trary, the scalp is dry and the hair is britde, drop a tea- 
spoonful of sweet almond oil in the last rinse water. 

4. A thorough shampoo with hot water into which 
a tablespoon ful of borax is placed, followed by a thor- 
ough rinsing in clean, cold water, will cleanse the scalp, 
allay itching and irritation, heal any scalp soreness and 
make the hair soft and flufl'y. 

5. A good shampoo for dry, falling hair is made as 
follows : Shave half a cake of white shaving soap and 
dissolve it in a pint and a half of hot water, add thirty 
grains of carbonate of soda, one hundred and twenty 
grains of powdered borax and two ounces each of bay 
rum and best cologne. Wet the head with a sufficient 
quantity of this liquid, first, however, moistening the 
hair with warm water, then rub with this shampoo all 
over, cleaning the scalp with the tips of the fingers, 
rinse in several waters, the last cold, and dry thor- 
oughly. 



I40 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

6. Sesquicarbonate of ammonia, two drachms ; car- 
bonate of potash, two drachms ; rain water, one- fourth 
pint. Dissolve and add the solution to a mixture of : 
Tincture of cantharides, one and a half ounces ; rectified 
spirit, one-fourth pint ; good rum, one and a half pints. 
Shake the whole well together, adding a little perfume or 
not at will. In using this preparation the hair is wetted 
with it, well rubbed so as to form a lather, and then 
either washed with clear water or rubbed dry with a 
towel. A less expensive and more common liquid, in 
which the rectified spirit and one-third of the rum is re- 
placed by water, forms the shampoo liquid often used by 
hair-dressers after cutting the hair. Cleanses the scalp, 
removes dandruff and checks falling hair. 

7. A healthful shampoo, particularly for an itching 
scalp: Use lemon juice and white of ^gg. Break the 
white of egg into a wash bowl. Add a pint of cold 
water and beat with the hand until frothy. Add the 
juice of a lemon. If you have much hair two lemons 
and more water may be used. Rub thoroughly into the 
scalp. Rinse twice in cold water. Dry the hair as 
quickly as possible. 

8. The dry shampoo, that is, powdering the hair and 
scalp with ground orris-root, imparts a delicate fragrance 
and helps to absorb the superfluous oil. It cannot, how- 
ever, be kept up indefinitely, and can never take the 
place of washing. 

Falling Hair. — i. Sir Erasmus Wilson's receipt 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 141 

for falling hair and grayness is an ounce of hartshorn, 
an ounce of chloroform, and an ounce of sweet almond 
oil, added to fifteen ounces of spirits of rosemary. Rub 
this well into the scalp after the hair has had a good 
brushing. 

2. To prevent hair from falling out : To a pint of 
hot water add a tablespoonful of borax, then add one 
drachm of salts of tartar and one ounce of almond oil ; 
shake well, and perfume with a few drops each of berga- 
mot, lemon, lavender and clove essential oils. A beauti- 
ful cream will be produced, which, shaken well before 
using, will impart a healthy gloss to the hair, cleanse the 
scalp and act as a deterrent to the falling out of thin hair. 

3. A simple remedy for falling hair is made by add- 
ing twenty grains of quinine to a pint of bay rum. 
Rub thoroughly into the scalp. 

4. To wash hair that is falling out and becoming 
thin use an antiseptic soap containing either resorcin, naph- 
thol, boric acid or tar. If a shampoo is preferred the fol- 
lowing is recommended : Ammonium carbonate, one 
hundred and twenty grains ; potassium carbonate, one- 
half ounce ; tincture of cantharides-, four drachms ; water, 
eight ounces ; bay rum, eight ounces. 

After washing the hair thoroughly rub the scalp softly 
every night with a little brush dipped in : Philocarpine 
nitrate, four grains ; tincture of cantharides, four drachms ; 
cologne water, four ounces; soap liniment, enough to 
make sixteen ounces. 



142 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

5. A very effective lotion to stop hair from falling out 
and to help its growing is made of the following ingredi- 
ents in the following manner : Put four ounces of oil of 
sweet almonds into one pint of alcohol, and put in two 
drachms of oil of bergamot ; then add aqua ammonia, four 
ounces ; rye whiskey, eight ounces ; gum camphor, one- 
half ounce. Mix. Shake thoroughly before applying 
and rub in thoroughly. 

Tonics for the hair. — i. An excellent scalp cleanser 
and tonic is made of: Bay rum, seven ounces; distilled 
extract of witch-hazel, nine ounces ; common salt, sixty 
grains; diluted hydrochloric acid, one drop; magnesia, 
sufficient. Rub this into the scalp three or four times a 
week. 

2. Oil of mace is a good stimulant for the hair. It 
is generally used with alcohol, and should be well rubbed 
into the skin. 

3. A good rubbing of the skin of the head serves to 
stimulate the growth of the hair. This should be done 
twice a week, and the friction should be so vigorous as to 
make the skin red and glowing. Thin hair has been 
known to become thick and long after this treatment. 

4. The following is an excellent hair tonic : Salicylic 
acid, one drachm ; spirits of ether, four drachms ; glycer- 
ine, one drachm ; alcohol, three ounces ; bay rum, to make 
eight ounces. 

5. A most effective tonic for the hair i-Si'. Bichloride 
of mercury, three grains ; tincture of cantharides, one- 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 143 

half ounce ; oil of sweet almonds, one drachm ; spirits of 
rosemary, one ounce; alcohol, two ounces; water, suffi- 
cient to make six ounces. Apply to the hair and scalp 
daily. 

6. Quinine hair tonic. Quinine sulphate, fifteen 
grains; tincture of cantharides, one and a half drachms; 
tincture of rhatany, two and a half drachms ; spirit of lav- 
ender, one ounce; glycerine, one ounce; alcohol, suffi- 
cient to make twelve ounces. This is similar to ' ' Pinaud's 
Quinine Hair Tonic," and can be used in the usual 
manner. 

7. An efficient hair restorative. — Castor oil, two 
ounces ; alcohol, two ounces ; tincture of cantharides, one 
ounce ; rain water, one ounce ; oil of bergamot, one drachm. 
Mix and apply with a brush or the ends of the fingers, 
rubbing it in thoroughly. Use once or twice a week. 

8. Pure vaseline rubbed into the scalp at night stimu- 
lates the growth of the hair, but the hair should not be 
allowed to become oily or greasy. 

9. Kerosene oil is sometimes successful as a hair 
grower. It should be rubbed in well. Scalp massage 
and electric brushing are good for weak and falling hair. 

Dressings for the hair. — i. To dress the hair and 
keep it soft and tractable. Any hair dressing should be 
used sparingly and well brushed in. Pure sweet oil, six 
fluid ounces ; lime-water, two fluid ounces. Shake the 
bottle well before using any of the dressing. 

2. The following is an excellent preparation for the 



144 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

hair, removijig scurf and dandruff, and keeping the 
scalp healthy. Take two ounces of rosemary herb with 
roots, and break it up into small pieces ; add two table- 
spoonfuls of borax ; place in a jug and pour over it a pint 
of boiling water \ cover and let the contents steam near 
the fire for three hours, stirring occasionally. When cold 
press out, pour off and bottle the clear liquor, to which 
add one dunce of glycerine, shaking well together. If 
perfume be desired add half a drachm each of bergamot, 
lemon, grass and lavender. Rub well into the scalp. 

3. Hair oil. — Castor oil, one ounce; alcohol, three 
ounces ; oil of bergamot, one-half drachm. Mix well and 
apply as any hair dressing. 

4. Bay rum. — Magnesia and powdered borax, each 
thirty grains ; oil of bay, one-half to one drachm ; alco- 
hol, two ounces ; diluted alcohol, one quart. Rub the 
magnesia, borax and oil of bay in the two ounces of 
strong alcohol ; then put into a filter and gradually pour 
on the diluted alcohol to percolate through the magnesia. 

5. Brilliantine. — Castor oil, two drachms; sweet 
almond oil, one and a half ounces; glycerine, one 
drachm ; Jockey Club extract, one and a half drachms ; 
alcohol, enough to make four ounces. To be used on 
the hair, eyebrows, moustache and beard. 

Dandruff. — i. To preveht dandruff the hair brushes 
must be scrupulously clean and the combs should not be 
so fine as to excoriate the scalp. A laxative diet, or an 
aperient medicine, and the use of a soft brush and any 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 145 

one of the various lotions and dressings that have been 
given will cure dandruff. The following lotion is a most 
excellent preventive of dandruff: Tincture of canthar- 
ides, one ounce ; liquid ammonia, one drachm; glycerine, 
half an ounce; oil of thyme and rosemary oil, half a 
drachm each ; mix altogether with six ounces of rose- 
water. Rub the scalp thoroughly with this preparation 
until no further evidences of dandruff are noticeable. 

2. To cure dandruff. Wash the hair thoroughly, 
then rub the scalp gently with a little sponge dipped in : 
Resorcin (resublimed), two hundred and forty grains; 
castor oil, five ounces ; alcohol, ten ounces ; Peru bal- 
sam, twenty-four grains. Apply this for a week, then 
wash the head again. 

Depilatories. — i. Superfluous hairs are a cause of 
much annoyance. There are nostrums that are warranted 
to eradicate such hair, but many of them are dangerous, 
and only beneficial for a time. For coarse hairs on the 
face the electric needle is the only cure. This process is 
quite out of the question for the arms ; the roots lie too 
deep, as the needle, to be effective, must reach the root 
of each hair. The depilatories given below are harmless 
and among the best that can be used. 

2. Sulphide of strontium, five drachms ; oxide of zinc, 
one and a half drachms ; starch, one and a half drachms ; 
menthol, five grains. Mix and grind to a fine powder. 
Make a paste of the powder with water ; apply to the 
hairy skin ; after it becomes dry scrape it off with a dull 



146 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

knife. The hair will come with it. Wash the parts 
clean and rub in some vaseline or olive oil. 

3. Take a strong solution of sulphuret of barium, and 
add enough powdered starch to make a paste. Apply the 
same as No. 2. 

4. Sulphuret of calcium and quicklime in. equal parts 
reduced to a fine powder. Keep in a tightly corked bot- 
tle. Use as No. 2. 

Curling Fluid. — i . Powdered borax, one half ounce ; 
gum arable, fifteen grains ; spirits of camphor, three 
drachms; hot water, eight ounces. When borax, gum 
arable and hot water are in solution, add the camphor. 
Moisten the hair with this lotion, rolling in small ringlets 
and pinning with invisible pins. 

2 . Another hair curling liquid. — Potassium carbonate, 
sixty grains ; ammonia water, one-half drachm ; alcohol, 
six drachms ; rose-water, sufficient to make eight ounces. 
This liquid is highly recommended. Wet the hair with 
it, adjust loosely ; it curls upon drying. 

Itching of the scalp, — Lemon juice is suggested as a 
remedy for an itching and burning sensation of the scalp. 
Take a ripe, juicy lemon, squeeze and strain the juice 
into a bowl ; add a teacupful of boiling water. When 
the liquid has cooled somewhat, saturate the scalp with 
it, manipulating with the finger-tips for five or ten 
minutes; do not rinse, but dry with a warm towel. 
When entirely dry use an egg shampoo. 

Dry and unmanageable hair. — i. When the hair 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 147 

is inclined to be dry use half an ounce of spirits of rose- 
mary, the same of spirits of camphor, and half that of 
glycerine, and the juice of a lemon ; shake all well 
together and then add four ounces of alcohol. Apply 
this every other night, alternating with a pomade com- 
posed thus : two ounces of prepared Jard, two drachms 
of white wax; melt these gradually, then add four 
drachms of balsam of tolu, twenty drops of oil of rose- 
mary and two drachms of tincture of cantharides. The 
balsam of tolu must be dissolved in half an ounce of 
rectified spirits of wine for twelve hours. 

2. Lanolin, the fat of the sheep's wool, is excellent 
for the hair. Equal parts of vaseline or olive oil should 
be added to it, as it is naturally harsh and sticky. 

Dyeing the hair is an exhibition of the worst possible 
taste. Hair dyes are very objectionable, and the results 
from their use are nearly always disastrous. However, 
if a dye is used it should be the simplest thing possible. 
Here is one receipt that is said to be practically harmless. 
To a pint of white wine vinegar add two ounces of iron 
filling and one ounce of bruised gall-nuts. Boil until 
reduced one half, strain and bottle for use. 

2. A strong solution of coffee containing a little salt 
is good for the hair and is said to keep it from turning 
gray. 

3. To gradually darken the hair. — Sulphate of iron, 
one drachm ; rectified spirits, one ounce ; oil of rose- 
mary, twelve drops ; pure soft water, one-half pint. 



148 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

Shake all together until thoroughly dissolved and mixed. 
Old ale may be substituted for the water. 

4. A harmless wash that makes brown hair take on 
a sunny tinge is a mixture of saffron and tincture of 
rosemary. Steep a handful of saffron in a pint of the 
tincture. 

Gray hair will turn dark if it is treated with a 
mixture of two ounces each of glycerine and rose-water. 
This should be rubbed into the hair every morning. 

To bleach hair 071 the arms. — i. Use hydrogen 
peroxide. First test the effect of this on the skin by 
using it diluted, as in some cases it is irritating. The 
natural oil of the skin should first be removed by wash- 
ing with hot water and soap and a little ammonia. 

2. The following is a French receipt for the purpose 
of decoloring hair on the arms. Liquid ammonia, fifty 
grams ; distilled water, four hundred and fifty grams ; 
salt, ten grams ; camphor, one gram ; rose essence, 
sufficient to perfume. Use this every morning, bathing 
the arms thoroughly with it. 

3. To bleach or restore a switch of white hair that 
has turned yellow, clean thoroughly and expose it moist 
to the fumes of burning sulphur in a box. 

For vermin (^lice) in the hair see under Lice ; also 
the following : Comb the hair thoroughly with a fine 
tooth comb, removing all that are grown. Follow this 
with an application of lard to the scalp and roots of the 
hair. Repeat in a day. The grease seems to kill the nits. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 149 

To wash hair brushes dissolve a quarter of an ounce 
of borax in boiling water. When it is nearly cold dab 
the bristles up and down, without allowing the backs of 
the brushes to become wet. Or add a spoonful of aqua 
ammonia to a quart of warm water in a wash basin. 
Rub the bristles until they are clean. Strong soap-suds 
also may be used, but it makes the bristles soft. When 
the brushes are clean rinse them in clear cold water and 
dry them either by the fire or in the sunshine. 

To clean a brush without wetting it, comb the hairs 
out of it, and then rub plenty of flour into the bristles, 
wrap the brush up in paper and leave all night ; next 
morning shake and brush the bristles and remove the re- 
maining flour by blowing the brush. Ivory-backed 
brushes that have become yellow may be whitened by 
rubbing with moist pumice-stone. 

Tortoise-shell combs or ornaments that have lost their 
polish may be renovated by rubbing them with very 
finely powdered rottenstone mixed with a little olive oil. 

Combs can be most easily cleaned by using an old 
tooth-brush and soap-suds, then drying the comb by the 
fire. 

Handkerchiefs. — i. Finely-embroidered and lace 
handkerchiefs should not be washed with other articles ; 
they are nicely laundered in the following manner : 
Make a warm suds with white Castile or ivory soap or 
soap powder, place the handkerchiefs therein and let 



ISO RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

them soak over night. The next morning squeeze each 
piece in the hands, and place in another bowl of soap- 
suds ; move them about, gently squeeze out the suds and 
rinse in clear warm water. Take a tablespoonful of gum- 
arabic and dissolve it in a pint of boiling water, and 
when it is almost cool dip the handkerchiefs in it; 
squeeze them dry, shake gently and spread them upon 
a mirror, window pane or piece of glass, flattening out all 
the embroidered edges. 

2. White silk handkerchiefs should be carefully 
washed in warm soap-suds made with pure white soap, 
then dried quickly and ironed with a moderately warm 
iron, having a clean piece of muslin between the silk and 
iron. Do not rub the handkerchiefs on the wash-board ; 
do not rub soap on them ; and do not boil them. If 
washed as directed white silk handkerchiefs will not 
turn yellow. See Silks also. 

Hands. — i. To wash the hands so that they will be 
perfectly clean, prepare a bowl of hot water, soap and a 
teaspoonful of borax. Soak the hands in this for a few 
minutes, then take a little corn-meal and rub them well. 
This removes all soil and is not as harsh as a nail-brush ; 
a hard rubber brush may be used to advantage. After 
every particle of grime has disappeared rinse the hands 
in clear water and rub over them a little lemon juice. 
Dry them thoroughly and go carefully around each nail 
with a pointed wooden stick, pushing the flesh well down 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 151 

so as to show the little white moon at the base. Cut 
away any flesh which may stand loosely around the nail 
and rub the rough places with a piece of pumice-stone. 
Never scrape the nails nor file the surface ; either process 
will thicken them. No style is in better taste than the 
simple oval. 

2. To wash the hands whm they are roughened by 
cold or labor, wash them in vinegar in which a handful of 
corn-meal or wheat bran has been put, rubbing thoroughly, 
then wash off and apply a lotion made of equal parts of 
glycerine and rose-water. The above treatment will 
soften and heal the hands when they are* rough and 
irritated. 

3. For red hands the following is an excellent dress- 
ing : Honey, one ounce; almond oil, one ounce; juice 
of one lemon ; yolk of one egg. These ingredients 
should be well mixed. 

4. For spots and freckles this is also good : Violet 
water, one ounce; glycerine, one drachm ; tincture of 
benzoin, one-half drachm ; powdered borax, one-fourth 
drachm. The borax and glycerine should be rubbed 
together, and the violet water added very slowly. The 
tincture of benzoin is added last. 

5. Lemon juice and glycerine, say one ounce of 
each, will soften and whiten the hands. If there are 
freckles on the hands add one drachm of powdered borax 
to the mixture. 

6. The following mixture has been recommended for 



152 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

making the hands white : Pour half a pint of hot milk 
upon a heaping tablesp6onful of scraped or grated horse- 
radish. Put this into a bottle, retaining the horseradish 
in the milk. After having washed the hands rub them 
with this lotion, and then dry them with a towel. 

A little lemon juice either clear or diluted applied to 
the hands and allowed to dry in is a most effective 
whitener of the skin. 

7. Unpleasant perspiration of the hands may be sub- 
dued by dusting them, after they have been washed and 
dried, with powdered orris-root. 

Insuffici^t drying is the cause of many chapped hands, 
A little almond meal dusted on the hands after they have 
been washed and wiped absorbs the moisture and pre- 
vents chapping. 

The following lotion is one of the best that can be used 
for chapped hands. If glycerine is reddening to the skin 
it may be omitted and still leave a fine lotion, at once 
whitening and softening. Cocoanut oil, three ounces; 
lanolin, one ounce; glycerine, one ounce; tincture of 
tolu, one-eighth of an ounce; tincture of benzoin, fifteen 
drops. Rub thoroughly into the hands at night and 
cover with loose gloves. 

Camphor ice is good for chapped hands. See also 
under Chaps. 

Hands that are badly cracked may be cured by putting 
copal varnish (kept by paint dealers) into the cracks. A 
simple and efficient remedy. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 153 

A/i ointment for cracked /uj/h/s is fnade of : Camphor, 
sixty grains ; boric acid, thirty grains ; make into an 
ointment with one-half ounce lanolin and one-half ounce 
vaseline. Apply freely to the hands. 

For suggestions to remove sunburn, tan, etc, see un- 
der Sunburn, Tan, Face and Skin. 

Hats. — I. To clean a white sailor or other straw hat 
which has lost its white color, get five cents' worth of 
oxalic acid ; dissolve it in a pint of warm water and apply 
with an old tooth-brush, scrubbing thoroughly on a flat 
surface, then rinse carefully, as, unless the acid is thor- 
oughly washed off it will rot the straw. Dry on a flat 
surface in the bright sunshine. 

2. Panama hats may be bleached by dampening them 
and then exposing them to the fumes of burning sulphur 
in a closed box or barrel. They may also be cleaned 
with oxalic acid as described above. 

3. White straw hats may also be cleaned with lemon 
juice and flowers of sulphur. Brush the hat thoroughly 
to cleanse it from dust, then with an old tooth-brush 
dipped in lemon-juice thoroughly wet a small portion at 
a time ; next, dip the moist brush into sulphur and rub it 
into the lemon-juice, giving the hat a thorough cleansing. 
Then brush it and dry it in the sun. 

4. Black straw hats may be renovated by revarnish- 
ing them, which really takes the place of dyeing, using 
some black sealing-wax pounded into small pieces, and 



154 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

pouring over it enough methylated spirits or alcohol to 
dissolve it. Mix this varnish thoroughly and apply it 
with a soft brush to the hat, covering every crevice of the 
straw. Blue straw hats may be freshened in the same 
manner, using blue sealing-wax. - 

Headache. — i. The best physicians agree that treat- 
ment between the attacks of headache is most likely to 
cut short their number and lessen their intensity. Per- 
sons subject to sick headache should regulate the diet 
with care, avoiding rich foods and fats, using lemons 
freely, drinking the juice squeezed in water. Plenty of 
exercise should be taken in the open air ; a sponge bath, 
followed by brisk rubbing, should be taken once a day ; 
and some simple laxative should be taken. In many 
cases the cause of headache is deep-seated and must be 
removed before permanent relief can be hoped for. 

2. For sick headache a doctor suggests the following 
treatment : When the first unpleasant symptoms are felt 
one should lie down with the head low, and take a tea- 
spoonful of aromatic spirits of ammonia in a little water. 
If there is chilliness put a hot water bag to the feet and 
cover warmly with a blanket. If there is nervousness 
and depression take half a teaspoonful of tincture of 
valerianate of ammonia, instead of the aromatic spirits of 
ammonia, and repeat the dose in fifteen minutes. The 
room should be darkened ; one should keep perfectly 
quiet and endeavor to sleep. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 155 

Should these remedies not avert the attack and the pain 
and nausea begin to be felt, take a tablespoonful of strong 
tea or coffee, without milk if possible, very hot or very 
cold, and repeat every fifteen minutes for four doses. 
Oxalate of cerium is sometimes very effective. It can be 
procured at the druggist's, and should be put up in pow- 
ders of twenty grains each. Shake one dry on the tongue, 
swallow with a little water and repeat in an hour. Soda- 
mint tablets, one every ten minutes until six have been 
taken, are efficacious, if administered early. If the 
stomach does not contain a lot of undigested food it is best 
to check the desire to vomit. Effervescing citrate of mag- 
nesia, iced vichy or soda-water will often soothe the 
gastric disturbance. When there is much food in the 
stomach vomiting affords some relief. 

When the attack comes on it is also recommended that 
the sufferer, lying in a darkened room, should drink large 
quantities of hot water, following this with a saline 
cathartic. 

When the pain is severe a piece of linen may be dipped 
in alcohol and water and a single fold bound on the fore- 
head, wetting it as soon as it becomes dry. Sometimes 
a flannel wrung out of boiling water and applied as hot 
as it can be borne will give more relief. 

If the feet are cold they may be immersed in hot water 
containing one or two tablespoonfuls of mustard. This 
is not impossible even if the sufferer cannot sit up. Ly- 
ing on the back with the knees bent the feet can be put 



156 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

in a foot-tub of water placed on the bed with little or no 
disturbance. 

3. Menthol vinegar or tincture makes a good head- 
ache cologne^ affording immediate relief. Use : Menthol, 
one-half ounce; alcohol, one fluid ounce; or menthol, 
three parts ; white vinegar, ninety-seven parts. The first 
tincture is very strong. Paint it right over the pain, 
rubbing it into the forehead and temples. Then take 
half a glass of hot water and add from five to ten drops 
of the tincture, inhale the fumes until it cools off, so that 
you can drink it. It should be taken as hot as possible. 

4. An efficacious liniment for headache is made by 
dissolving two and one-half ounces of camphor, one 
fluid drachm of oil of lavender, in seventeen fluid ounces 
of alcohol ; then adding three fluid ounces of ammonia, 
and shaking until mixed. A piece of linen wetted with 
it, folded, and applied, and then covered with a dry cloth 
and pressed with the hand will generally relieve super- 
ficial pains and headache. 

5. For nervous headache salicylate of soda is a 
remedy. Ten grains every three hours for an adult, 
followed next day in five to eight -grain doses, taken by 
dissolving in water, will afford relief. 

6. For neuralgic headache camphor and chloral, 
rubbed together until they form a liquid, may be painted 
over the spot. Any of the foregoing remedies, espe- 
cially those containing menthol, will ease the distressing 
pain. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 157 

7. When one ca?tfiot sleep, one should get a druggist 
to put up seven capsules of eight-grain anti-febrin each 
and take one each night as one retires. In a week a new 
and good habit will be formed, especially if one goes to 
bed at nine o'clock. 

8. The numerous headache cures that are advertised 
are more or less injurious and should be avoided. Some 
create a habit that is hard to break ; and nearly all 
contain acetanilid which is a heart-depressant and when 
taken carelessly may cause death. Any one having a 
sound heart may, however, take the following powder 
safely, as it contaii>s a heart stimulant that tends to over- 
come the depressing effect : Acetanilid, forty grains ; 
sodium bicarbonate, twenty grains ; ammonium carbon- 
ate, twelve grains. This should be made into ten cap- 
sules. The dose is one capsule, repeated in one or two 
hours if necessary. For headaches of all kinds. 

9. The headache of the brain worker can be stopped 
by taking a fair dose, say ten grains, of quinine at bed 
time, and a good night's sleep. 

A person subject to periodical attacks of headache 
should consult a physician and learn the cause. No 
permanent cure can be effected until the cause is re- 
moved. 

Heartburn. — i. A good remedy for heartburn is: 
Magnesia, three-fourths ounce ; pulverized Turkish rhu- 
barb ; one drachm ; cinnamon water, one ounce ; dis- 



158 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

tilled or soft water, four ounces; spirits of lavender, one 
drachm. The dose is a tablespoonful half an hour after 
each meal. 

2. For relief from heartburn add a teaspoonful of 
lemon juice to half a glass of cold water in which has 
been dissolved half a teaspoonful of carbonate of soda 
and drink immediately. 

Hearth. — To clean a tiled hearth : Obtain some 
soft soap ; put a handful of this into a pail of hot water, 
and with a clean cloth wash down the tiles. The dirt 
will be removed very quickly, and the tiles will have a 
beautiful gloss. • 

Hemorrhage. — See Bleeding. 

Hiccough. — I. The following is an old and well- 
tried specific for hiccough : Moisten granulated sugar 
with good vinegar. Of this give to a child from a few 
grains to a teaspoonful. The effect, it is said, is almost 
instantaneous, and the dose seldom needs to be re- 
peated. 

2. When an infant has hiccough, pat him gently 
but suddenly on his back, give him a little hot water in 
which are a few grains of sugar or a drop of essence of 
peppermint, and do not let him take his food too 
quickly. 

3. Traction of the tongue is said to be a cure for the 
most severe case of hiccough. A case of hiccough that 
had lasted for six hours was arrested by traction of the 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 159 

tongue for a minute and a half. More severe cases have 
been cured in two minutes. This treatment is well 
\\ orth a trial. 

4. Another good remedy for hiccough is for the 
patient to crowd the fingers tight into the ears and to 
chew, or move the jaws as in chewing, vigorously. A 
wad of paper may be placed in the mouth and the suf- 
ferer should chew it hard. 

Hives. — I. An old fashioned but efficient remedy 
for hives is a solution of common baking soda and 
water. Dissolve half a cupful of the soda in a basin of 
water. Bathe the spots with this several times a day ; 
or, 

2. Cleanse the skin with white soap and water, then 
apply a lotion made by dissolving two tablespoonfuls of 
boric acid in a quart of water and adding a teaspoonful 
of starch, boiling all together and using when cold. 
Keep the bowels open. 

3. When the above remedies do not cure use : 
Chloral hydrate, one drachm ; powdered camphor, one 
drachm. Mix these together and then add to two 
ounces of vaseline or cold cream, and apply to the body 
once or twice daily, rubbing it in well; 

Hoarseness. — Simple remedies for hoarseness are : 
I. Gargle the throat with a solution of boric. 

2. Allow a small amount of borax to melt in the 
mouth. A lump of borax the size of a pea, or about 



i6o RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

three or four grains, held in the mouth for a few minutes 
or until dissolved, is generally sufficient. Two or three 
such pieces, however, may be safely used within an hour 
before speaking or singing, if necessary. 

3. A remedy that singers sometimes use is the white 
of an egg beaten to a stiff froth. 

4. Lemon juice will clear the throat and temporarily 
relieve hoarseness. 

Most of the remedies given for Colds and Coughs 
will cure hoarseness. 

Inflammation. — i. The white of an egg, into 
which a piece of alum about the size of a hickory nut, 
or a corresponding quantity of powdered alum, has been 
stirred, stirring constantly until it forms a jelly or curd, 
is a good remedy for inflamed parts. It should be laid 
over the part upon a piece of lint or cloth and rewet in 
the whey as often as it becomes dry. It allays inflam- 
mation and soreness quickly. 

2. A poultice made by dipping flannel in hot water is 
good for any inflamed part. The cloth should be ap- 
plied hot and changed often. 

3. An excellent antiseptic dressing for all kinds of 
inflammations, inflamed sores, etc., is composed of: 
Pure carbolic acid, one ounce ; powdered camphor, two 
ounces ; alcohol, two and a half drachms. Moisten some 
alisorbent cotton with this lotion and apply to the part. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES i6i 

bandaging well; or paint it upon the inflamed surface 
once a day. 

Ink Spots. — I. When a washable garment or 
article gets stained with ink; before washing it, cover the 
stain with salty grease well rubbed in, and let it stand 
for twelve hours ; then wash. 

2. To remove ink spots milk is effective, especially 
sour milk. Soak in the sour milk immediately after the 
stain occurs, if possible. If a stain remains use 
chloride of lime. 

3. OxaUc acid dissolved in water will remove ink 
spots. Rinse well afterward in clear water. Oxalic 

^acid is poisonous. 

4. Stains made by indelible ink can be removed with 
a concentrated solution of cyanide of potassium. Apply 
to the stain with a camel's hair brush. When the stain 
disappears wash the portion of cloth that has been 
treated through several waters. Use the solution with 
caution ; it is poisonous. 

5. // is said that printer'' s ink can be removed from 
clothing by wetting thoroughly with turpentine, letting it 
alone for two or three hours. Benzine also is said to re- 
move stains from printer's ink. Put the stained part into 
a quantity of benzine, then brush with a stiff brush and 
clean benzine. Dry, and then rub with soap and water. 

6. To extract ink from floors, scour with sand which 
has been made wet with a half and half mixture of water 



i62 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

and sulphuric acid. Afterward rinse with strong saleratus 
water. 

Insects. — I. Insects in closets may be exterminated 
by the use of carbolic water. Dissolve four ounces of 
carbolic acid crystals and pour into a bottle containing a 
pint of cold water. To each gallon of cleaning water add 
two tablespoon fuls of this liquid. The water should 
reach every crack in the closet or drawer. The odor 
soon passes off. 

2. Pennyroyal, either the fresli or the oil, will drive 
away insects. If the oil is used, pour some into a saucer, 
and soak in it pieces of cotton batting. Place these in 
closets, drawers, boxes, etc. 

3. Hellebore, if fresh, is a good insecticide to use on 
plants. It should be dusted over plants while they are 
wet, particularly on the under side of the leaves. It is 
death to aphides on roses. Whale-oil soap-suds is some- 
times preferred to hellebore. It is applied with a sprayer. 
Fir-tree oil soap is also very good. 

Insomnia. — See under Sleeplessness. 

Iodine Stains are removed by washing with alcohol, 
then rinsing in soa})y water. 

2. Hyposulphite of soda solution is said to remove 
iodine stains from cotton fabrics. 

3. Ammonia will also remove iodine stains when they 
are fresh. Soak tlie article for an hour in warm water 
strongly impregnated with ammonia. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 163 

Iron. — I. Grates, trimmings, fixtures, etc., of iron 
may be made to look like new by the application of a 
little drop-black dissolved in turpentine, to which a little 
varnish has been added. 

2. Iron grates should be polished with black lead. 

3. To remove iron stains from a fabric, soak with 
lemon juice ; sprinkle with salt and bleach several hours 
in the sun. See Rust. 

Itch. — I. A medical authority prescribes the follow- 
ing ointment for the itch : Zinc oxide, two drachms ; 
calomel, fifteen grains ; salicylic acid, ten grains ; lanolin, 
one- half ounce ; carbolized vaseline, one-half ounce. Mix 
well ; and apply twice daily. 

2. Another valuable ointment for itch is : Lard, 
one-fourth pound, sulphur, one-half ounce; white pre- 
cipitate and benzoic acid, each one-half drachm; sul- 
phuric acid and oil of bergamot, each one-half fluid 
drachm; saltpeter, one drachm. Have the saltpeter in 
powder; melt the lard, remove from the fire, and |K>ur 
into a dish ; then put in the other ingredients, stirring till 
cold. Anoint well night and morning till cured. 

3. J^or acute barber' 5 itch use : Precipitated carbon- 
ate of zinc, one drachm ; oxide of zinc, one drachm ; 
glycerine, two drachms ; solution of lead sub-ace;ate, two 
drachms; rose-water, eight ounces. Use as a wash morn- 
ing and night. 

Ivory. — Ivory that has become yellow can be whitened. 



i64 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

it is said, by washing in a solution of one ounce of nitric 
acid in ten ounces of soft water ; apply also by brushing ; 
rinse in clean water. 

It is not easy to whiten ivory. In many instances it 
cannot be done at all. It is claimed that sawdust thor- 
oughly wet with lemon juice laid upon ivory will restore 
its freshness somewhat. Ordinary stains on ivory can be 
removed by vigorous rubbing with whiting and turpentine. 

A solution of a tablespoonful of oxalic acid in one-half 
pint of boiling water is suggested. Wet the ivory with 
water, then with a tooth-brush j brush on the acid solution. 

Javelle Water. — This water, which will remove fruit 
stains from linen or cotton goods, is made by boiling a 
pound of soda in a gallon of water for ten minutes, and 
then adding a pound of chloride of lime. When the 
fluid is settled the clear part should be bottled and 
corked tightly, and kept for use when stains cannot be 
removed with soap and hot water. Javelle water will 
turn white the dirtiest linen as well as remove stains. A 
much stronger liquor is made by using more soda (bicar- 
bonate of soda) and lime to the gallon of water. 

Jet. — When jet trimmings look dull and dusty they can 
be brightened up by rubbing them gently with a sponge 
dipped' in diluted alcohol, and then wiping dry with a 
piece of soft black silk or woolen goods. Jet may also be 
moistened with some good oil and then wiped with 
chamois skin. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 165 

Jewelry. — i. Rings, brooches, and other articles of 
jevveh-y should be brushed occasionally with a soft brush 
that has been dipped in eau de cologne. If the setting is 
open it should be brushed from the back. Then lay the 
articles in boxwood sawdust which has been slightly 
heated beforehand, and leave them for some thirty 
minutes. 

2. Gold chains may be washed in soap-suds, drying 
them on a soft towel by pulling the chain backward and 
forward, but care must be taken to pull the right way 
of the curb or link. They may also be placed in saw- 
dust, and rubbed briskly with soft chamois skin. 

3. Jewelry may be cleaned by washing it in soap-suds ; 
rinsing in dilute alcohol (half water, half alcohol), and 
placed in dry sawdust to dry ; then rubbing with the saw- 
dust. Chamois skin is excellent for rubbing and polish- 
ing jewelry. 

4. Articles of silver may be washed and made as bril- 
liant as when new by washing in ammonia water (one 
teaspoonful aqua ammonia to one pint very hot water) 
brushing them well and then drying with a soft linen 
towel, and rubbing with soft clean chamois. 

5. Silver may also be washed -^Viki a liquid made as 
follows : Mix together, half an ounce of fine salt, half an 
ounce of powdered alum, and half an ounce of cream of 
tartar. Put into a large pitcher and pour on two quarts 
of water and stir until dissolved. Then put into bottles 
and cork. Shake well before using. Pour some of the 



i66 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

liquid into a bowl, and wash the silver all over with it, 
using an old soft linen cloth. Let it stand about ten 
minutes, then wipe dry and rub with chamois skin. 

Kerosene Stains soon evaporate, leaving scarcely a 
trace behind. The process can be hastened, however, 
by covering the spots with flour, leaving it for twenty-four 
hours, brushing off the flour and repeating, if necessary. 

Kettles. — To clean a porcelain kettle, fill it half full 
of hot water and put in a tablespoonful of borax ; let it 
boil. If this does not remove all the stains, scour with a 
cloth rubbed with soap and borax. 

Kettles can also be made clean by boiling out with 
water and common washing soda. 

Knives. — i. If it should happen that the steel of 
knives or forks becomes rusted, rub sweet-oil on them, 
let them stand for twenty-four hours, then rub them with 
powdered quicklime and the stain will be removed. 

2. Ivory handles that are stained may be whitened by 
rubbing them with whiting and spirits of turpentine. A 
vigorous rubbing greatly improves their appearance. 

3. When steel cutlery is to be put away for any length 
of time melt some pure mutton suet and dip the steel part 
of the knives and forks in it. When cool, wrap in tissue 
paper and then in canton flannel. 

4. To fasten the handles of knives or forks that may 
have become loosened, melt together four parts of rosin. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 167 

one of beeswax and one of brick dust. This cement will 
fasten the loosened handles. 

Lace. — I . There are many different kinds of laces, 
varying in quality and design, and this naturally gives rise 
to various modes of cleansing and restoration. A satisfac- 
tory mode of cleaning fine hand-made laces that are not 
badly soiled is by the use of powdered chalk or calcined 
magnesia. This method of cleaning- is credited to 
Madame Modjeska. The lace should be neatly spread out 
upon a soft white cloth or fine white paper, and thor- 
oughly covered with the chalk or magnesia ; then this 
should be covered with another cloth or paper of a simi- 
lar nature, and the whole should be laid away for a few 
days under a heavy weight. At the expiration of the 
allotted time the lace should be taken from its wrappings 
and should receive a gentle but thorough shaking in order 
to remove the powder. This is most essential, for if it is 
not beaten out, but allowed to remain undisturbed for a 
considerable time, it will surely ruin the lace by eating 
away the thread. 

2. Fine lace which has become quite soiled may be 
cleaned by washing it carefully in benzine. The lace 
should be put into a bowl and covered with the best and 
purest benzine, and be allowed to soak for a short time, 
occasionally receiving a gentle shaking, but it should 
never be rubbed with the hands. If necessary, when the 
benzine is poured off it should be replaced by a fresh 



i68 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

supply and the lace allowed to, soak again for a time. 
After it has become perfectly clean it should be pinned, 
while still quite wet, on a flannel-covered board to dry. 
It is important that this should be done with great care. 
Plenty of small pins should be used for the purpose, each 
point must be fastened down securely with due regard to 
the pattern of the lace, so as to keep it even and correct. 
If the lace dries before the task has been completed it 
should be moistened again with a sponge squeezed out of 
benzine, and then be exposed to the sun where the fresh 
air may play upon it, in order to dispel the disagreeable 
odor arising from the benzine. Benzine is very inflam- 
mable and must be kept away from fire and artificial 
light. 

3 . White silk lace may be soaked over night in milk 
and soap-suds and gently dipped up and down in the 
liquid ; rinse in cold water, pat nearly dry, and lay out 
flat to dry with the points carefully pulled out. These 
laces are not ironed, but any that are should be laid on a 
soft pad and protected from the iron by an old piece of 
muslin. 

4. Delicate laces or finely embroidered handkerchief s 
should not be sent to the laundry nor placed in the family 
wash. The following mode of washing is an excellent 
one for such articles. Place the soiled pieces of lace in 
a bowlful of warm suds made from white Castile or ivory 
soap and allow them to remain over night ; the next 
morning squeeze each piece dry in your hands, and place 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 169 

them in another bowl of soap-suds ; move them about, 
gently squeeze them as free from the suds as possible and 
rinse them in clear warm water. Take a tablespoonful 
of white gum arabic and dissolve it in a pint of boiling 
water, and when it is almost cool dip the lace or hand- 
kerchiefs in it ; squeeze dry, shake gently and spread them 
upon a piece of glass, flattening out all the leaves and 
embroidered edges. When they are quite dry remove 
them from the glass. 

5. White cotton lace should be soused in a lather of 
soap and warm water until clean, squeezed dry in a towel 
and then smoothed out on an old towel or sheet, the scal- 
lops being picked out and pinned down if necessary. 

6. If it is desired to give a yellow tinge to lace, make 
some strong coffee, boiling it for an hour; strain, and 
mix with cold water until the right tint has been secured; 
then soak the lace in it for half an hour after it has been 
rinsed, and dry as before directed. 

7. A simple and excellent method of cleaning ecru lace 
which has become dusty and soiled is to give it a bath 
in dry corn-meal. About a quart of corn-meal should be 
put into a bowl or pan, into which the lace should be 
dipped, then rubbed and squeezed with the hands as 
though the meal were water. After this treatment and a 
good shaking, the lace will look fresh and clean. 

8. An old and tried method of freshening black lace 
is to soak it in cold milk, rinsing in cold water and press- 
ing on the wrong side with a moderate iron over an old 



170 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

handkerchief. A hot iron makes black lace appear, rusty. 
Black lace should not be dried near a fire or it will look 
rusty. 

9. Lace that has grown rusty from dust should be 
well shaken and rinsed in a cup of water with a table- 
spoonful each of alcohol and powdered borax j pat nearly 
dry, pull out the edges and iron, or dry over a bottle. 
When sponging lace, rub from the selvage down so as 
not to pull it out of shape. 

10. Black lace may be cleaned by sponging with a 
wad of black silk, using a liquid made by boiling an old 
black kid glove in a pint of water until it is only half 
a pint, or in a weak solution of borax and warm water, a 
teaspoonful to a pint, sponging the right side and ironing 
on the wrong side while damp. 

11. To revive and cleafi black lace make some tea 
about the strength usual for drinking, and strain it off the 
leaves. Pour enough tea into a basin to cover the quan- 
tity of lace, let it stand ten or twelve hours, then squeeze 
it several times, but do not rub it. Dip it frequently into 
the tea, which will at length assume a dirty appearance. 
Have ready some weak gum-arabic water, and press the 
lace gently through it ; then clap it several minutes ; after 
which pin it to a towel to dry. When it is nearly dry, 
cover it with another towel and iron with a moderate 
iron. This treatment makes the lace look like new. 

12. Gold and silver laces are cleaned with a part of a 
loaf of stale bread, mixed with a quarter of a pound of 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 171 

powde-r blue, rubbing the bread fine and mixing the blue 
with it. Sprinkle thickly over the lace, and in a short 
time it will brighten ; then brush off the crumbs with a 
piece of flannel and rub softly with a piece of red velvet. 
13. Lace curtains. See Curtains. 

Lfameness. — For lameness of the back, knees, etc., 
try this simple home remedy. Add a little saltpeter to 
strong cider vinegar and steep wormwood leaves in it. 
Make a poultice of the leaves and bind on the affected 
part, as hot as possible, and leave it on until it is cold. 
Sometimes a second application is necessary, but one is 
usually sufficient. 

Lamps. — I. To clean lamp burners, boil them in a 
strong solution of borax. The solution may be renewed 
if the burners are very dirty. 

Another way is to dissolve an ounce and a half of sal 
soda in a quart of water; put into this the burner, set it 
on the stove and let it boil ten minutes, then rinse and 
dry the burner. This should be done every two weeks. 
Wood ashes also are good. Lamp burners may also be 
cleaned in the following manner: Save all your onion 
peelings and when the burners get dark or begin to look 
old wrap each burner with the onion peelings,putting on 
several thicknesses, tie firmly with string, put in a dish, 
cover with warm water, add a tablespoonful of kerosene, 
and then boil for an hour or two; finally wipe the 
burner dry, and it will look like new. 



172 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

2. It is said that if lamp wicks are soaked in vinegar 
before being used they will not smoke. 

3. Lamp chimneys may be toughened and made less 
apt to crack by being put into a dish of cold water to 
which some common salt has been added, set upon the 
stove and boiled slowly, then allowed to cool gradually. 

4. To fasten a glass lamp securely in its iitetal socket 
mix plaster of Paris to a paste with cold water, put a 
layer in the socket and press the lamp firmly in place. 
The plaster hardens in a few minutes. Mucilage 
thickened with plaster of Paris makes a good cement for 
lamps. 

5. To prevent a lamp from smelli fig offensively 2Xidi 
from leaking over, trim the wick and clean the burner 
each day. Do not have the reservoir quite full. 
Always turn the wick well down into the wick tube 
before blowing out. After the lamp is trimmed in the 
morning turn the wick well down into the tube. Wash 
the burners once a week. 

Laxative. — Mix well together : Bicarbonate of soda, 
eight ounces ; tartaric acid, seven ounces ; Rochelle 
salts, two and a half ounces ; sulphate of magnesia, three 
ounces. For laxative effect, take one teaspoonful ; for 
cathartic effect, take one tablespoonful. Put the salt in 
a dry glass, fill half full with water, and drink at once. 
The above dose may be repeated if it does not act 
within an hour. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 173 

Leak. — In an emergency when a pan, boiler or kettle 
springs a sudden leak and it is not convenient to get it 
soldered, a good home-made cement may be made by 
taking the white of an egg and some fine coal or wood 
ashes and mixing them together until a paste is formed. 
Spread this mixture on the hole outside of the vessel and 
hold over the fire until the egg is hard and dry. 

Leather. — i. A dressing for leather furniture is 
made as follows : Put into a bowl one gill of hot water, 
half an ounce of arnotto, and half an ounce of white 
soap, shaved fine. Place the bowl in a pan of boiling 
water. Into a second bowl put half an ounce of bees- 
wax, shaved fine, and place in the pan of boiling water. 
Stir the contents of both bowls until they are melted, 
then take them from the fire. Into the melted wax stir 
one gill of turpentine, one gill of paraffine oil, and finally 
the mixture of arnotto, soap and water. Beat the 
mixture until it is cold ; then put it in a wide-mouthed 
bottle or fruit jar for future use. This preparation may 
be used on brown or red leather. First wash the leather 
with a soft cloth and hot milk ; then rub on the dressing 
with a soft cloth. If the leather be faded the dressing 
may be made darker by using two or three times the 
quantity of arnotto. If the preparation be for dark 
green or black leather add a little logwood to the mixture. 

2. To revive the lustre of morocco or any other 
leather, apply the white of an egg with a sponge. 



174 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

Lice. — I. There are numerous ways of getting rid of 
lice in the hair. Camphor is a remedy, also alcohol and 
coal oil. Apply any of these freely and it will destroy 
both vermin and nits. 

2. To bind the head up with cloths saturated with 
kerosene oil for twenty-four hours, then washing with 
soap and water, and if the scalp is sore to rub in a little 
olive or cod-liver oil, is an effectual remedy. 

3. Wash the head daily for two days ; on third day 
take a good shampoo of soap and water and apply two 
and a half grains of bichloride of mercury and one ounce 
of aromatic acetic acid. Equal parts of vinegar and 
water or a fine comb will remove dead lice and nits. 
See also Hair. 

4. Lice on plants can be killed' by using either 
tobacco water or tobacco dust. If the dust is used draw 
the earth away from the roots of the infected plants, 
scatter the dust over them thoroughly and mix some of 
it with the soil as it is put back around the plants. This 
should be done as soon as the lice are discovered. The 
plants can also be sprinkled with water and the dust then 
sifted upon them. 

Liime water. — i. Lime water is made as follows : 
Take a small lump of lime weighing about half an ounce, 
and pour on it six tablespoonfuls of cold water ; when 
the fizzing has subsided add one pint of water, and let it 
stand half an hour, stirring occasionally. Allow the 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 175 

lime to settle to the bottom, pour off the liquid and throw 
i t away, add four quarts of water to the lime, shake well 
and keep in a tightly corked jug or bottle. This is the 
formula used by druggists. 

Linens. — See Washing. 

Liniment. — i. A good liniment for all uses is: 
Spirits of camphor, one ounce; chloroform, four 
drachms; ammonia spirits, four, drachms; spirits of 
peppermint, four drachms ; tincture of capsicum, four 
drachms ; oil of sassafras, four drachms ; oil of winter- 
green, four ounces ; oil of turpentine, one ounce ; 
alcohol, sufficient to make thirty-two ounces. Mix. 

2. Another excellent liniment is made of : Gum 
camphor, two ounces ; oil of origanum, hemlock, 
sassafras, and tincture of cayenne, each one ounce ; oil 
of cajuput, spirits of turpentine, chloroform and sulphuric 
ether, each one-half ounce ; best alcohol, one pint. For 
internal pain take from fifteen drops to a teaspoonful, ac- 
cording to the severity of the case, in sugar or in a httle 
sweetened water or milk, to be repeated in thirty minutes 
if necessary. For external use rub it in three or four 
times at each application. 

3. A valuable liniment for all purposes for which 
liniments are used is made as follows : Gum camphor, 
gum myrrh, opium, cayenne, and oil of sassafras, each 
one ounce; oils of hemlock, red cedar, wormwood, 
spirits of turpentine and hartshorn, each one-half ounce ; 



1/6 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

alcohol, one quart. Cut the opium finely ; mix and 
shake daily for a week, then strain for use. 

Linoleum. — i. There are several methods of treat- 
ing linoleum to keep it in good condition and to restore 
it when it becomes faded, dingy and worn. Simply 
washing it with soap and water whenever it becomes 
soiled is good. Again, washing it clean, drying it per- 
fectly and rubbing it with a cloth with paraffine oil, and 
afterward letting it stand an hour or two and then rub- 
bing it with a woolen cloth. This treatment will keep 
the linoleum soft and give it a gloss, but it will grow 
darker and soil quickly. Another treatment consists of 
painting the linoleum and when the coat is dry, putting 
on two coats of varnish. 

2. A weak solution of beeswax in spirits of turpentine 
is' useful for brightening the appearance of linoleum. 
One and one quarter pounds of wax or paraffineand one- 
half gallon of turpentine dissolved by gentle heat and 
applied warm is a good dressing. 

3. liinoleum will wear- longer and look better if it is 
given a coat of varnish three times a year. Let the var- 
nish get perfectly dry before walking on it. When clean- 
ing, add a little kerosene to the water ; it softens the 
dirt and hardens the linoleum. 

Lips. — I. To prepare a salve for the lips, take half 
an ounce of alkanet and three ounces of oil of almonds ; 
put these in an earthen vessel in a warm place to melt. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 177 

In another vessel put an ounce and a half of white wax 
and half an ounce of spermaceti ; melt these also ; when 
liquid, add the oil and put in twelve drops of attar of 
roses. Stir the mixture until it is thick, pour into a jar 
and set aside to harden. 

2. Put half an ounce of spermaceti ointment in a dish 
over hot water, and add seven grains of alkanet, letting 
it stand in the heat until the ointment is a pretty rose 
color; strain through fine muslin and then stir in seven 
grains of balsam of Peru and two drops of oil of cloves, 
the latter to preserve and perfume the whole. Before 
adding the clove-oil let the whole settle, pour from the 
dregs and then put in the oil. 

3. The following is a good lotion for chapped lips : 
Mix one and a half ounces of glycerine, three drachms 
of borax and one and one-half pints water. This is also 
good for all itching and irritation of the skin. 

Pure glycerine is good for chapped lips. 

Liver Spots are brown discolorations that appear upon 
the skin, caused by some derangement of the internal 
organs. A good physician should be consulted. 

An ointment to apply externally which will help to re- 
move them when used with other treatment is made of 
one ounce of benzoinated lard, one ounce of white pre- 
cipitate, one drachm of subnitrate of bismuth. Put this 
on the blemishes carefully every night for five applica- 
tions. 



.178 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

Mahogany. — i . To clean mahogany, spread paraffine 
oil on the soiled woodwork and let it stand for an hour 
or more to soften the dirt, then wash v/i.th soap and warm 
water, and wipe dry. Next rub on a mixture of paraffine 
oil and turpentine — one-third turpentine and two-thirds 
oil. Polish with a soft old flannel. Let it rest for an 
hour or two, then polish with soft old linen. If the sur- 
face is very dull, dirty and scratched, instead of washing 
with soap and water, add more oil and sprinkle powdered 
rottenstone over it. Rub gently and regularly, first with 
a circular motion and then with the grain of the wood. 
When the surface is smooth and bright, wipe off the 
rottenstone and finish as you would after washing with 
the soap and water. 

2. Stains and spots may he taken out of mahogany 
with a little nitric acid and water, or oxalid acid and 
water, rubbing the spot until the color is restored, then 
washing the wood well with water, then drying and pol- 
ishing it with suitable polish. 

3. Mahogany staining. See under Staining. 

Marble. — i. Mix two parts of powdered whiting 
with one of powdered bluing and half a cup of soap-suds, 
and heat it to the boiling point ; while it is still hot, ap- 
ply with a soft cloth to the discolored marble, and allow 
it to remain there until it is dry, then wash off with hot 
water in which a little salts of lemon has been dissolved. 
Dry with a piece of soft flannel. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 179 

2. Another way : Boil four ounces of soft soap with 
four of whiting and one of soda. Apply hot and let it 
remain on the marble for a day or two. 

3. Smoke and soot stains may be removed with a hard 
scrubbing-brush and fine sharp sand to which has been 
added a little potash. 

4. To remove grease spots saturate a little whiting or 
fuller's earth with benzine, apply to the spots and let it 
stand for some time. 

5. Marble statuary that is soiled from dust may be 
washed with strong soap-suds with a soft cloth, then rinsed 
in clear, warm water and wiped dry with a soft cloth. 
Finger-marks may be removed by soap and water or by 
using a good scouring-soap. 

Match Stains. — Stains from matches on walls or 
marble may be removed with whiting, pumice-stone and 
water. 

Matting. — i . Straw matting is kept clean, and cleaned 
and freshened when soiled, with salt and water. The 
matting should be swept clean ; then go over it with a 
woolen cloth and salt water, about a tablespoonful to a 
quart of water. Wring the cloth almost dry, and rub the 
matting briskly, then rub with a dry cloth. 

2. Bran water also is good for cleaning matting. For 
an ordinary room, place two handfuls of bran in a bag 
and put it in a gallon of boiling water, pressing the bag 
so that all the strength of the bran will be in the water. 



i8o RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

Dilute this water, and wash the matting with a woolen 
or crash cloth, drying at once with another cloth. 

3. Benzine and French chalk will remove grease from 
matting. Scrape the chalk freely over the spot, and then 
sprinkle enough benzine over it to moisten it. When 
the benzine has evaporated, brush off the chalk, and the 
spot will have disappeared. 

Mattress. — To clean a hair mattress take it into an 
empty room, rip it apart, empty it and pick over every 
particle of the hair carefully. When picked, take about 
ten pounds at a time and wash thoroughly in strong luke- 
warm soap-suds. This makes it curly and crisp and 
washes away the dirt that clings to it. When it is washed 
rinse it handful by handful, wringing it as dry as you 
can with the hands. When it is all rinsed and wrung 
spread it in huge sheets of mosquito netting, basting 
them together at the sides. Spread the sheets across the 
clothes-line or on a grassy knoll, where it will become 
perfectly dried in the sunshine and air. 

In the winter hair may be thoroughly dried by spread- 
ing it on the clean floor of a furnace-heated room, turn- 
ing it frequently until all dampness is dispelled. When 
it is perfectly dry it is ready to be put in a new ticking, 
or in the old ticking if that has been washed for the pur- 
pose. 

Meat. — I. To keep meat fresh, dust it over with pure 
powdered borax and rub it in as one would pepper and 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES i8i 

salt. The meat should be well washed before it is cooked. 
In some cases the solution may be preferred to the pow- 
der ; but either or both may be used with perfect safety. 

2. To prevent skippers in smoked meat, such as hams, 
shoulders and bacon, see that all crevices are filled with 
borax. Flies will not deposit their germs in crevices 
filled with borax ; consequently no skippers are formed. 
It is not necessary to have any borax on skin side of 
meat. This process also keeps the meat from shrinking. 

3. Sausage, pie and chopped meat can be kept in a 
sweet, healthful and palatable condition by mixing one 
pound of boric to one hundred pounds of meat, mixed 
with the meat during the process of chopping. 

Metals. — I. To clean metals mix a half pint of 
neatsfoot oil and half a gill of spirits of turpentine, and 
scrape a little rottenstone, wet a woolen rag with this, 
and rub the metal well. Wipe it off with a soft cloth and 
polish with chamois. 

2. Use powdered whiting, two tablespoonfuls of sweet 
oil and a little yellow soap. Mix with spirits of wine to 
a cream. Rub on with a sponge, wipe off with a soft 
cloth and polish with chamois skin. 

Mice. — See Rats. 

Mildew. — I. Mildew is a very difficult stain to re- 
move, and cannot be taken out of linen unless the effort 
is made soon after it appears. A very fresh, light stain 
may be treated successfully by covering it with table salt 



1 82 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

wet with lemon juice, and placing it on the grass in the 
sun. But the best remedy is the following : Mix soft 
soap with powdered starch, half as much table salt and 
the juice of a lemon. Spread this mixture on both sides 
of the mildewed linen, and then lay the fabric on the 
grass in the sun. Repeat the operation two or three 
times a day, leaving the cloth out over night. If this 
will not remove the stain nothing will do it. 

2. Another remedy is to rub plenty of soap upon the 
stains, also plenty of powdered chalk, and place the gar- 
ment in the sun. It may be necessary to apply the soap 
and chalk more than once. 

3. Mildew 7tiay be prevented by putting an earthen 
bowl or deep plate full of quicklime into the closet. The 
lime will absorb the dampness, and sweeten and disinfect 
the place. Charcoal also is good. 

4. A good remedy for mildew on plants, especially on 
roses, is flour of sulphur. This should be dusted over 
the affected parts while they are damp. Mildew on 
plants is caused by dampness and cold draughts gener- 
ally. Changing the location of the plants to some other 
location may be of benefit. 

Milk. — I. To sterilize milk, put it into clean bottles, 
wrap the bottles in flannel, stand them in a pot of hot 
water, let it come to a boil, and when the milk steams, 
cork the bottles tightly and boil half an hour. Allow the 
bottles to cool ; and keep the milk in a cool place until it 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 183 

is used. This destroys any minute germs that may infest 
the milk and cause disturbance in the digestive organs. 

2. A home-made sterilizer of approved form is made 
in the following manner : Take a tin pail large enough 
to contain the bottles needed during twenty-four hours. 
Insert a perforated tin pie plate in the bottom, or have a 
false bottom made perforated with holes and with legs 
half an inch high to permit the water to circulate under- 
neath it and to prevent the bottles from cracking. Punch 
a hole in the lid and put a cork in it, pierced to admit a 
common dairy thermometer, with the bulb dipped in the 
hot water. It may be read by taking the cover off the 
pail. Let the water come as high as the milk in the bot- 
tles, and when it reaches a temperature of 155° Fahren- 
heit, remove the pail from the fire and cover closely for half 
an hour. Put into the refrigerator until used. In sum- 
mer the water should boil for from three to five minutes 
according to the size of the bottles. This form of steril- 
izer is recommended by the United States Department of 
Agriculture. 

3. A third of a teaspoonful of salicylic acid (or, if 
the temperature be high, a little more) per quart delays 
curdling for thirty-six hours, without interfering with its 
yielding cream. 

4. Milk may be kept sweet without ice by putting it 
in a clean glass fruit jar and wrapping the jar with a long 
strip of muslin or cheese-cloth that has been dipped and 
wrung out from the coldest water available. Leave one 



1 84 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

thickness over the mouth so that the air may pass through. 
Place the jar in a darkened room and moisten the cloth 
occasionally. 

Mirrors. — A good way to clean a mirror is to rub it 
with a paste of whiting and water. When this dries, rub 
with dry chamois and remove^ the powder. A little alco- 
hol in cold water also gives a brilUant polish. If warm 
soap-suds are used they should be rinsed off with warm 
water and ammonia ; the glass should then be rubbed 
with whiting tied in a piece of muslin, and polished with 
a chamois skin. 

Mole. — I. A harmless lotion that will not injure the 
skin and may do some good is aromatic vinegar. Milk, 
weed juice is also good. 

2. Electrolysis, however, is the best method of getting 
¥id of moles. Moles may also be taken out by a knife. 
When this operation is skilfully performed the scar left 
is hardly noticeable. 

3. A paste made and applied as follows may do some 
good : Mix thirty grains of salicylic acid and two ounces 
of bay rum. Use a tiny camel's hair brush and touch 
only the mole itself night and morning. It takes several 
days to affect the mole at all, and a week or more for it 
to heal. Treat only one spot at a time. 

Mosquitoes. — i. Camphor fumigation will drive 
mosquitoes away. Procure for the purpose an ordinary 
iron spider, using either live coals or charcoal. Do the 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 185 

fumigating at night, and fumigate thoroughly. Laven- 
der may be mixed with the camphor, or a little dried 
pennyroyal. The best mixture for fumigation is equal 
parts of camphor, dried pennyroyal, lavender and in- 
cense. All these are perfectly harmless. The rooms 
should be tightly closed during the fumigating process. 

2. Another way to rid a room of mosquitoes is to put 
a small piece of gum camphor in a tin vessel and evapor- 
ate it over a flame. A sponge dipped in camphorated 
spirits and fastened to the top of the bedstead will also be 
found of service. 

3. A little pennyroyal sprinkled about the room, or a 
bottle of it left uncorked, will drive mosquitoes out. 

4. To prevent mosquitoes from biting, the following 
preparation should be rubbed on the hands and face : 
Oil of tar, one ounce ; olive oil, one ounce \ oil of penny- 
royal, one ounce; spirits of camphor, one-half ounce; 
glycerine, one-half ounce; carbolic acid, two drachms. 
The foregoing is strong and will be found effective. 

5. Another preparation to apply to the hands and face 
to keep mosquitoes from biting is : Oil of lavender, two 
drachms ; castor oil, one and one-half ounces ; alcohol, 
six drachms. Mix ; and rub on the exposed portions of 
the body. 

6. To alleviate the unpleasant sensation caused by the 
bite of the mosquito : Oil of cloves, bicarbonate of soda, 
ammonia, chloroform, thymol, ordinary soap and tincture 
of myrrh are all good. The following is good : Carbolic 



i86 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

acid, one-half drachm ; glycerine, three drachms ; rose- 
water to make three ounces. Mix ; apply freely to the 
bite. 

Moths. — I. The surest and cleanest way to eradi- 
cate moths in furniture, carpets, etc., is to saturate the 
articles with naphtha, always keeping in mind that this 
must be done away from fire and artificial light, and 
with windows wide open. If the articles can be taken 
out on the piazza the naphtha may be applied freely. 
The operation should be repeated after several days, as 
the eggs may not all have been destroyed at the first 
tfial. 

2. Another effective way to get rid of moths is to 
boil one part formalin in two parts of water over an 
alcohol stove in all the rooms and closets. It is also well 
to hang strips of white woolen material in the middle of 
each closet, away from other clothing. These should be 
examined frequently and burned as soon as any moths 
are found in them. 

3. All articles that are apt to become i7ifested with 
moths should be brushed and aired in the sun frequently. 
Furs, woolens and feathers should be perfectly clean 
before they are put away. Soiled places should be 
cleaned with benzine. Pockets should be turned inside 
out and all seams and hems should be brushed. Pin 
the articles in cotton bags. Put them in boxes or closets 
previously made insect proof by carbolic acid. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 187 

Bits of cotton wet with oil of cedar should be put into 
the boxes or closets, or cedar chips or camphor may be 
used. From spring until fall, carpets, upholstered 
furniture, woolen garments and furs hanging in closets 
should be brushed, beaten and aired frequently. 

A good wash for closets, drawers and chests is made 
by adding a tablespoonful of commercial carbolic acid to 
a gallon of water and washing the same with this liquid, 
injecting it into all cracks and crevices. Be sure that 
there are no moth eggs in the articles, then wrap them 
up and put them away. 

4. Buffalo moths may be exterminated by the use of 
lavender or musk or camphor or anything else with a 
decided odor. Put a little gum camphor in the corners 
and around the edges of the floors. Keep the rooms 
open and as light as possible. 

5. Before a carpet is put down the floor should be 
washed with benzine or spirits of turpentine. No fire or 
light should be in the room at the time. 

Mouth. — Mouth-washes are used to cleanse and 
sweeten the mouth and gums and to do away with an 
offensive breath. It is best to use a mouth-wash in the 
morning before breakfast. The following formulas are 
among the best that can be used. 

1. Thymol, seven and a half grains; alcohol, two 
ounces ; borax, fifteen grains ; distilled water, one pint. 

2. Dissolve a tablespoonful of borax in a pint of hot 



i88 RKCKIPTS ANJ) RKMKDIKS 

water ; before the water is quite cold add a teaspoonful 
of spirits of camphor and a teaspoonful of tincture of 
myrrh. A wineglassful or more of this should be used 
to rinse the mouth night and morning. 

3. Tincture of myrrli, one-half drachm ; sodium 
bicarbonate, one-half drachm ; chlorate of potassium, a 
pinch ; distilled water, six ounces. 

4. Peppermint, fifteen drops ; alcohol, one-half 
ounce ; rose-water, one ounce ; tincture of orris, one- 
half ounce. 

5. Myrrh, powder, one-half ounce ; borax, one-half 
ounce; red saunders, one-half ounce; sugar, one-half 
ounce; cologne water, three ounces; alcohol, nine ounces j 
water, four and one-half ounces. Mix, macerate for 
several days with agitation, and filter. 

6. A good wash for the mouth is made by putting a 
tablespoonful of prepared borax and a drachm of cami)hor 
into a decanter containing about a pint and a half of 
warm water. The clear liquid may be used to rinse the 
mouth with, and more water added as required, until 
all the borax and cam[)hor are dissolved. The excess 
of cam[)hor will float on the top, and the excess of borax 
fall to the bottom of the decanter, to be taken up as fresh 
water is supplied. 

7. For a mouth-wash there is nothing very much 
better than diluted listerine. This is good to keep the 
voice in good condition, to cleanse the gums and to 
correct an offensive breath. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 189 

8. For sore mouth or gums and for cleansing the 
mouth and reh'eving sore throat in sickness a hquid 
made of the following ingredients and used as a gargle is 
reconnnended : Thymol, four grains ; benzoic acid, 
one and a half drachms ; tincture of eucalyptus, three 
drachms ; water, one and one-half pints. '1 ake about 
one tablespoonful into the mouth, gargle thoroughly 
and hold in the mouth several minutes before spitting it 
out. 

9. A teaspoonful of chlorate of potash in half pint of 
water and used as a gargle also is a good mouth wash. 

Mucilage. — i. A sim[)le and good nuu'ilage is made 
of four ounces of gum nrabic and one half of a pint of 
soft water. Tut the gum into a bottle, pour the water 
upon it, turn it bottom upward and shake occasionally 
for a day or two until it is dissolved. Three or four 
drops of oil of cloves may be added. 

2. Another good mucilage is made of: Gum traga- 
canth, one ounce ; corrosive sublimate, a thimbleful ; 
soft water, one and a half pints. Stir and shake occasion- 
ally until it is dissolved. If it is considered too thin, 
more powdered tragacanth may be added. This mucilage 
is poisonous. 

Mustard Plaster. — i. A mustard plaster made 
according to the following directions will not blister the 
most sensitive skin : Two teaspoonfuls mustard, two 
teaspoonfuls flour, two teaspoonfuls ground ginger. Do 



190 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

not mix too dry. Place between two pieces of old muslin 
and apply. If it burns too much at first lay an extra 
piece of muslin between it and the skin ; as the skin be- 
comes accustomed to the heat take the extra piece of 
muslin away. 

2. When the effect of the plaster is wanted quickly 
it should be made of pure mustard and hot water without 
any flour or meal, and covered with a thin piece of old 
muslin laid next to the skin. It will give notice of 
necessity for removal as it begins to bite at once. As 
soon as the smarting becomes uncomfortable and the 
skin very red the plaster may be changed to some other 
spot. Where there is no haste, as in cases of deep- 
seated pain or chronic ailment, it is better to add to the 
mustard at least one-half flour and some glycerine or 
white of egg. Vinegar should not be used, as it destroys 
the activity of the mustard. 

To make a mustard plaster with the white of egg^ 
mix the mustard with the white of one egg until it forms 
a smooth paste, then spread it between two thicknesses 
of soft muslin before placing it upon the affected part. 

Nails. — I. A bowl filled with warm water in which 
a lather of some good soap has been made, allowing the 
fingers to soak about fifteen minutes, will render the flesh 
pliable and soft and the nails pink and transparent. The 
nails may then be easily manicured. A soft stick, rounded, 
not pointed at the end, will serve to push the epidermis, 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 191 

or flesh overhanging the root of the nail back. Curve 
the nails medium, neither long nor short. 

2. A simple powder for polishing the nails is com- 
posed of two hundred parts zinc oxide, two parts car- 
mine, and a few drops of oil of violets to perfume. 

3. A home-made polisher may easily be made by pad- 
ding a small stick, four inches long by two wide, with 
cotton wadding, covering it with either chamois skin or 
felt. This will serve the purpose as well as one backed 
with ebony, gold or silver. 

4. A good polish for the nails is : Oxide of tin, one 
ounce ; oil of lavender, ten drops ; a little powdered car- 
mine to color. 

5. The simplest method of removing stains from the 
nails is with the use of lemon juice. Stains can also be 
removed by using a solution of acetic acid and rose- 
water, one part of the former to sixteen parts of the lat- 
ter ; shake well before using. 

6. For spots on the nails a little crude vaseline 
rubbed well in for several nights is recommended by the 
best manicures. 

7. For the little white spots that are seen on many 
nails the following is said to be a cure : Shoemaker's wax, 
ten grams ; myrrh, ten grams. Mix these well together, 
apply every night and leave on all night. 

8. Brittle nails. One remedy for this condition is 
olive oil rubbed thoroughly into the nails every night, 
then putting on loose gloves. 



192 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

Another recipe recommended to prevent or cure brittle 
nails is : Old oil, fifteen grams ; white salt, two grams ; 
powdered black rosin, two grams ; pulverized alum, two 
grams, six centigrams ; white wax, five grams. Rub this 
pomade on at night and then put on an old pair of 
gloves. 

9. To whiten the nails the following wash is sug- 
gested : Diluted sulphuric acid, three drachms ; tincture 
of myrrh, one and one-half drachms ; water, six ounces. 
Cleanse the hands and apply the wash. 

10. To beautify and strengthen the nails mix together 
one yolk of egg and two grams of white wax melted by 
gentle heat ; add a little sweet almond oil. Dip the nails 
in this pomade every night and then put on loose gloves. 
After three weeks, the nails should be beautiful and 
long. 

11. When one loses a finger ;7^// another one can be 
formed and the part protected by the use of wax. Plunge 
the finger several times into warm melted white wax. 
There will be thus formed several layers of the wax. Let 
these get cold and keep them on the finger as a protection 
until the old nail grows out. 

12. A cure for hangnails. Rub cocoa butter or 
mutton tallow into the nails every night and gently press 
the adhering skin away from the roots. The hangnails 
will soon disappear. 

Nausea. — Ginger, cloves, cinnamon and black pep- 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 193 

per, each one-half ounce ; cayenne pepper, one-half 
drachm; all these in fine powder; tincture of ginger, 
one-half ounce ; sufficient strained honey or molasses to 
make to the consistency of a poultice — rather stiff. Good 
to relieve and prevent nausea and vomiting. Apply over 
the stomach. 

Neuralgia. — i. An excellent remedy for neuralgic 
pains is one composed of equal parts of chloral hydrate 
and camphor. These ingredients should be rubbed to- 
gether in a mortar, then bottled for use. Apply it by 
painting it lightly over the affected part and allow it to 
dry. The foregoing is also good for headache and tooth- 
ache. Common neuralgic pains are relieved almost in- 
stantly. 

2. Neuralgia of the face can be cured by spraying 
sulphuric ether upon it. Using the ether as a liniment 
is also beneficial. 

3. An ointment for neuralgia : Menthol, forty-five 
grains ; cocaine, fifteen grains ; chloral, ten grains ; 
vaseline, five drachms. Apply to the painful part. See 
also Pain. 

Nickel Plate. — i. Gasoline is a very good article to 
use in cleaning nickel-plating. There should be no fire 
nor hght in the room where it is used, and the windows 
should be kept open to allow the gas to pass off. 

2. Whiting and water or water and alcohol are efficient 
cleaners of nickel plate. 



194 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

3. To remove rust from nickel-plated articles, cover 
the spots with oil or grease for a few days and then re- 
move the rust by rubbing with a little ammonia. If this 
does not remove the rust, try very dilute hydrochloric 
acid. When dry, polish with tripoli or whiting. 

4. Nickel that has become rusty may be cleaned by 
rubbing with a paste made of olive oil and whiting. 
Four or five rubbings may be required. To polish, use 
perfectly dry whiting. 

Nose — I. Those who suffer from an oily nose may 
find it a beneficial process to bathe it in bran and water 
or oatmeal and water. A little diluted toilet vinegar is 
also helpful in taking away the appearance of oiliness. 
Massage the nose gently with this night and morning, and 
tlien apply a dust of powder made of finely powdered 
starch and boracic acid powder. 

2. For the little black specks that sometimes seem to 
cover the nose, apply olive oil after a brisk rubbing with 
a Turkish towel. 

3. A rough nose may be made smooth by continuous 
application of glycerine and rose-water. 

4. A red nose may be whitened temporarily by using 
lemon juice and milk each night, followed by bathing it 
with i)erfumed toilet water and then dabbing it with a 
good rice powder. 

A paste made of oxide of zinc mixed with rose-water is 



RFXEIPTS AND REMEDIES 195 

also sometimes useful to conceal flushing and undue red- 
ness of the nose. 

Camphor, applied exteriially, tends to subdue redness 
of the nose also. 

5. lliose who stiff er frotn nasal catarrh should make 
a point of syringing the nose once a day with salt and 
water. The liquid should be inhaled up one nostril and 
exhaled down the other, as this shows there is a clear 
passage. 

6. A foreign body in the hose may sometimes be drawn 
out with a bent hairpin. If not easily removed in this 
way it should not be poked at. A little snuff or pepper 
may be sniffed in, or the opposite nostril tickled with a 
straw. The act of sneezing will probably dislodge the 
substance ; if not, it should be left for a surgeon to 
extract. 

It may also be of assistance to fill the lungs with air 
and expel it suddenly through the nostril, holding a finger 
over the other nostril. 

Nose Bleeding. — i. Epistaxis, or bleeding from 
the nose, is sometimes very troublesome. Keep the head 
thrown back, holding a wet cloth or sponge to receive 
the blood, at the same time raising the arms above the 
head. Press the fingers firmly on each side of the nose 
where it joins the upper lip. Place some cold substance, 
as a lump of ice, at the back of the neck, or on the fore- 
head at the bridge of the nose. If these remedies are 



196 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

ineffectual snuff a lillle fine salt or powdered alum into 
the nostrils. 

Other remedies are suggested as follows : 

2. Crowd the fingers tight into the ears and chew, 
pressing the teeth well together as if chewing food. 

3. The veins that supply blood for nose-bleed i)ass 
up to the nose about one to one and a half inches from 
the cliin. Press thumb and forefinger hard upon these 
veins for a little time and bleeding will stop. 

4. Chew a piece of soft paper into a small ball, and 
hold it between the teeth and the upper lip. The pres- 
sure on the veins will stop an ordinary bleeding. 

Odors. — 1. A good way to kill unpleasant odors 
arising from cooking is to sprinkle granulated sugar 
either directly on the stove or on a shovel of hot coals. 
This gives a not unpleasant scent that permeates tlie 
room. 

2. Keep a i)iece of newsi)ai)er scorching on the stove 
while doughnuts are being fried, and the paper smoke 
will drive away the unpleasant lard odor from the 
house. 

3. Coffee sprinkled on ?i hot stove will take away 
with it every vestige of bad odor. To prevent disagree- 
able fumes from rising when anything boils over on the 
stove, sprinkle salt quickly over the place. Best of all, 
though a trifle expensive, is to put a few drops of oil of 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 197 

lavender in a cui) and pour boiling water over it. There 
is nothing sweeter than the fragrance of lavender. 

4. P'or a nuisty odor in a house one should air and 
dry the cellar thoroughly. Fumigate it, whitewash the 
walls and keep it as dry and clean as possible. Keep a 
barrel of charcoal in the cellar, using it as needed for 
fires or for broiling, and replacing it as soon as it has 
been used. 

Oilcloth. — I. Ammonia, or any strong alkali, 
should not be used on oilcloth. The alkali softens and 
removes the finish. A good way to wash oilcloth that 
is badly soiled is to use a paste of whiting and soap-suds, 
rubbing it on with a woolen cloth. Wash off with clear 
water and wipe dry. 

2. Oilcloth may be washed with equal quantities of 
milk and water. Once in several months a little linseed 
oil may be used. It should be well rubbed in and pol- 
ished with a soft rag. 

3. To renovate oilcloths and make them clean ^ smooth 
and glossy, the following treatment is reconnnended : 
Dissolve ten ounces of paraffine and one quart of turi)en- 
tine by the aid of gentle heat, and apply with a sponge 
or piece of flannel to the clean and dry oilcloth. Let it 
remain on the oilcloth twenty-four hours, then polish 
with flannel. A fine gloss is the result. 

4. A cloth wrung out of turpentine brightens up an 
oilcloth. 



198 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

Oil Paintings. — A painting that is badly cracked 
should be given to some competent restorer. If, how- 
ever, the picture only needs brightening up, the work 
can be done by taking the painting out of the frame, 
dusting it on back and face, tightening if necessary, 
and then washing with a soft, clean sponge and luke- 
warm water and Castile soap or a piece of raw potato. 
Wash carefully until the dirt is all removed. When 
dry, wipe with a soft piece of linen. Revarnishing 
should be most carefully done. The varnish must be 
the best mastic picture varnish and should be used with 
a great deal of discretion. If the painting has never 
been varnished it can be used full strength; if it 
simply needs reviving dilute the varnish with one-half 
spirits of turpentine. This work should be done only 
bj^ a careful and competent restorer. 

Artists sometimes use a raw potato to clean oil paint- 
ings. Cut off the end of the potato and rub the paint- 
ing with the cut end. As fast as the potato becomes 
soiled cut off a thin slice and proceed as before. An- 
other method of cleaning is to rub the soiled surface with 
the finger wet in warm water. If the dirt is very hard 
and old use oil instead of water. Let it remain for a few. 
hours to soften the dirt, then wash off with a sponge and 
tepi.d suds. 

Oil Stains. — i. To remove sewing-machine oil 
stains rub the spot with sweet-oil or lard and let it 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 199 

stand for several hours; then wash it in soap and 
water. 

2. To remove oil stains from floors a strong hot solu- 
tion of oxalic acid is suggested. Afterward wash the 
spot well with soap and water. 

3. Oil stains may be removed from wash dresses by 
moistening the spots with a little fresh lard. Put ten 
drops of ammonia into a pint of warm water. Rub the 
material in the ammonia water, then again in strong, 
warm soap-suds, then again in the ammonia water and 
rinse thoroughly. See also Grease. 

Onions. — To remove the smell of onions from the 
breath eat parsley moistened with vinegar. 

Ointments. — i. An excellent ointment for chaps, 
excoriations, etc., is made of: Powdered borax, one 
drachm ; spermaceti ointment, one ounce ; glycerine, 
one drachm ; a drop of neroli to perfume. 

2. Sulphur ointment is made of : Sublimed sulphur, one 
ounce ; lard, four ounces. Mix thoroughly by grinding. 

3. Spermaceti ointment is made of: Spermaceti, 
five ounces ; white wax, two ounces ; almond oil, one 
pint. Melt the ingredients together by gentle heat, and 
stir constantly until the whole solidifies. 

Pain. — I. In cases of severe pain in any part of the 
body, in neuralgia of the sciatic nerve, in frontal head- 
ache, bruises, hurts, accidents, etc., hot fomentations ap- 
plied in the following manner will give immediate re- 



200 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

lief: Adjust a clothes-wringer to a small tub. Set a 
vessel of boiling water in the tub. Get a piece of 
woolen blanket eighteen inches square. Fold the 
blanket double in one direction, and in the other direc- 
tion fold it into a pad about four inches broad. Dip it 
in the boiling water, lift it out by means of two sticks, 
pass it through the wringer, and immediately apply it 
upon the naked skin over the bruise or painful part. 

This burns but it does not blister. It leaves no sore. 
It simply makes the skin red. It should be quickly cov- 
ered by dry flannel and then pressed or held tightly 
against the skin for fifteen or twenty minutes. Then 
again put into the boihng water, again wring out, and 
again apply in the same manner. Repeat this five times, 
the last time covering it quickly with dry flannel, four 
thicknesses, and apply a bandage, confining it to the 
parts by means of the bandage, until the pad feels cool ; 
then again repeat it five times as stated. It is advisable 
to anoint the part with vaseline before applying the hot 
fomentations, as that will diminish the danger of scalding. 

2. Another ready means of relieving pain is to heat 
tin or earthen pie-plates, flatirons, sand bags and hot 
water bags. Dry heat is very serviceable in cases of 
shock or coldness from injuries and accidents. It is a 
convenient means of relieving many neuralgic or nervous 
pains in the side, back and abdomen. It has also the 
advantage of being cleanly, and not annoying to the 
patient. It is of great value for pain of a nervous char- 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 201 

acter, while moist heat is better for inflammations. A 
good way to allay neuralgic pains in the head and face 
is to take a small bag of flannel, fill it with salt, heat it 
thoroughly and apply to the affected part. 

3. A most excellent camphor liniment for external and 
internal pains of all kinds : Gum camphor, two ounces ; 
oil of origanum; hemlock, sassafras, and tincture of cay- 
enne, each one ounce ; oil of cajuput, spirits of turpen- 
tine, chloroform, and sulphuric ether, each one-half 
ounce; best alcohol, one pint; mix, and keep corked. 
This is one of the best liniments for general purposes ever 
made. 

The dose may be from fifteen drops to a teaspoonful, 
according to the severity of the case, in sugar or in a 
little sweetened water ; to be repeated in twenty minutes 
if necessary. 

For external use it should be poured into the hand 
and applied over the pain, rubbing in well, three or four 
times at each application. 

4. Nerve and bone liniment. Oil of origanum, one 
ounce ; oil of rosemary, one ounce ; oil of amber, one 
ounce ; oil of hemlock, one ounce ; oil of turpentine, six- 
teen ounces ; linseed oil, twenty-four ounces. 

5. Another nerve and bone liniment, very strong, is : 
Oil of spike, six ounces ; spirits of camphor, hartshorn, 
tinctures of anise and capsicum, oil of cedar and origanum, 
of each two ounces ; best alcohol, eight ounces. Shake 
well while using. Bathe the parts two or three times 



202 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

daily, and rub briskly with the hand three to five min- 
utes at each application. 

6. Camphor and chloral, rubbed together until they 
form a liquid, painted over the spot, will relieve neuralgic 
pain. 

7. An ointment that will relieve painful muscles is 
the following: Seventy parts of lanolin and twenty 
parts of white vaseline. These are put into an earthen 
vessel which is set into a saucepan of boiling water. To 
the mixture ten parts of menthol are slowly stirred in. 
The liquid is poured off as soon as it begins to thicken. 

Paint. — I. It is frequently necessary to remove old 
paint from woodwork. There are several methods of do- 
ing this work. 

Make a strong solution of washing soda and apply it to 
the paint with a brush, being careful that the hquid does 
not get on the hands or clothing. After a short time 
wash off with a mop. Ammonia is a good agent also. 
Use dilute household ammonia and proceed as with 
washing soda. Begin to wash off as soon as the fumes 
pass off. Both chemicals darken the wood. 

A solution of soda and quicklime will remove paint also. 
Equal quantities of the two articles should be used. The 
soda is dissolved in hot water, the lime is then added, 
and the solution is applied with a brush. A few moments 
are sufficient to remove the coats of paint, which may be 
washed off with hot water. The wood should be after- 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 203 

ward washed with vinegar or an acid solution before 
repainting, to remove all traces of the alkali. 

2. Faint spots upon windows may be removed with 
a strong, hot solution of sal soda, one ounce to a pint of 
boiling water. Apply the solution with a rag or sponge on 
a stick so as not to affect the fingers. Wash off with hot 
water as soon as the paint spots are softened. 

A solution of soda and unslaked lime is also an effective 
paint remover. 

3. Paint stains on garments may be removed with 
turpentine. Apply the turpentine with a sponge, then 
hang the garment in the open air until the odor disap- 
pears. 

Chloroform also removes paint stains. It should be 
applied with a rag or sponge until the spot disappears 
from the garment. It may be necessary to first cover 
the spot with olive oil or butter, then to apply the chloro- 
form. 

Paste. — I. To make library paste, soak one level 
teaspoonful of gum arable (quarter of an ounce) in two 
tablespoonfuls of cold water. Mix two heaping table- 
spoonfuls (one ounce) of rice-flour with half a pint of 
water. Wet the flour with a little cold water and add 
the balance boiling. Add the gum arabic and cook for 
ten minutes, stirring frequently. Add a few drops of 
carbolic acid and put in a small jar. It must be kept 
from the air. 



204 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

2. A good strong paste that will not mould is made 
as follows : Two ounces of rye-flour are mixed in one 
pint of cold water until quite smooth. Then add one- 
quarter ounce of alum, boil until quite thick. Add fif- 
teen grains of salicylic acid. 

3. Paste for wall-paper. Take three pints of flour, 
rub smooth in two quarts of cold water, add eight quarts 
of boiling water and let this boil slowly. Stir constantly 
for ten minutes. When cold, stir in two tablespoonfuls 
of powdered alum. Use about as thick as will run off 
the brush. 

4. Starch paste for wall-paper. Dissolve one pound 
of best gloss starch in a quart of cold water. Use a large 
pail or dish-pan. Boil a kettle of water and add to the 
starch, stirring constantly until starch is cooked. If starch 
is too thick when cool, reduce it with cold water. 

Patent Leather. — To keep patent leather soft and 
to restore the gloss, the following paste will be found 
most satisfactory : Add to some pure wax which has 
been melted in a dish set in a pan of boiling water, some 
olive oil, and then some lard. Mix thoroughly by stirring 
over a fire. Add some oil of turpentine and a little oil 
of lavender. This will form a paste which should be put 
in boxes. Apply with a soft rag ; rub with a flannel. 

Pearls. — When pearls need cleaning, soak them in 
hot water in which bran has been boiled, with a little 
cream of tartar and alum, rubbing gently between the 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 205 

hands when the heat will admit of it. When the water 
is cold renew the application until any discoloration is re- 
moved, rinse in lukewarm water ; lay them on white pa- 
per in a dark place to cool. 

Perspiration. — i. For odorous perspiration apply to 
the skin beta-naphthol, one-half drachm, to distilled witch- 
hazel, four ounces. 

2. This powder is also good : Powdered oleate of 
zinc, one-half ounce; powdered boracic acid, three 
drachms. The surface should be kept covered with this 
powder. 

3. An excellent powder for destroying odors of per- 
spiration : Salicylic acid, one drachm ; boric acid, pow- 
dered, three drachms ; starch, one ounce ; talcum powder, 
four ounces; oil of bergamot or other perfume, twenty 
drops ; alcohol, two drachms. Mix alcohol and oil to- 
gether, and add gradually to the mixed powders. 

4. A lotion for perspiration consists of eight grains of 
tannic acid to four ounces of bay rum. For hands and 
armpits : After using this lotion apply a dusting powder 
of prepared chalk or orris-root. 

5. For feet that perspire excessively use : Oxide of 
zinc, one ounce ; starch, two ounces ; salicylic acid, one 
drachm; talcum powder, seven ounces; oil of winter- 
green, five drops. Mix well, adding oil last. Dust in 
shoes and rub on feet. Or use the following : 

6. Salicylic acid, twenty grains ; boric acid, two 



206 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

drachms ; corn-starch, one ounce. After washing the 
feet night and morning, and thoroughly drying them, 
dust them freely widi this powder. 

7. Two ounces of alcohol, four of tannic acid, and 
one-half ounce cologne will allay excessive perspiration 
and remove the offensive odor. 

8. Powdered alum deodorizes disagreeable perspira- 
tion. It should be dusted under the arms after the morn- 
ing bath. This is said to be an excellent deodorizer, but 
it will not prevent excessive perspiration. 

Piano. — When a piano needs repolishing it is better to 
employ an experienced polisher than to make unskilful 
attempts oneself. Furniture polish should not be used 
on a piano. Ordinarily a vigorous rubbing with a dry 
j)iece of soft flannel is all that is necessary to remove 
spots. Make sure that no gritty substance is on or under 
the cloth to scratch the wood. A cloud upon the polish 
and some stains will yield to a light brushing with a rag 
dampened with lukewarm water ; but the surface should 
be at once rubbed with chamois, following the grain of 
the wood. If the surface is wax-polished put a little tur- 
pentine on a piece of linen and rub it in, afterward going 
over it well with a soft, dry cloth. 

If, however, one is so situated that a polisher cannot be 
secured, and it is necessary to clean and polish a piano 
the work should be done in the following manner : Go 
over the woodwork with a cloth wet with paraffine oil, 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 207 

being generous with the oil where the woodwork is much 
soiled. Let this remain two or three hours to soften the 
dirt. Then wash with soap and water and a soft cloth, 
being careful not to let any water touch the works inside 
the piano. Use a good white or a white Castile soap. 
Wipe dry with a soft cloth and polish with soft old linen 
or ch.amois leather. 

The ivory on the keys may be restored to whiteness by 
being covered with a paste made of whiting and a solu- 
tion of potash. This should be left on twenty-four hours, 
then removed. See Ivory. 

Pictures. — See Engravings. 

Piles I. An ointment for piles is made of: Co- 
caine- hydrochlorate, two grains ; extract of belladonna, 
one drachm; carbolic acid, five drops; tannic acid, two 
drachms; vaseline, one ounce. Make into an ointment 
and apply night and morning. 

Dry heat by means of a hot water bag or cloths heated 
over the fire and placed against the piles will afford relief. 
The movement of the bowels should be soft and at least 
two a day. Saline laxative can be taken. 

2. A soothing and healing ointment for itching piles 
is made of: Sulphur, one-half drachm ; acetanalid, one- 
half drachm ; bismuthoxide, one-half drachm; lead acetate, 
one-half drachm ; liquid tar, thirty-six drops ; white vase- 
line, six drachms. Apply one to three times a day. 



2o8 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

Pimples. — I. When pimples are not very bad wash- 
ing them every morning with very hot water and ichthyol 
soap will be found beneficial. 

If the pimples are very persistent some internal remedy 
should be prescribed by one's physician, and at the same 
time some ointment or lotion should be used. The fol- 
lowing remedies are among the best that could be used. 
Local treatment consists in keeping the skin very clean, 
and in applying some good healing ointment. 

2. A good ointment for pimples is : Ointment of 
oleate of zinc, one ounce ; ointment of rose-water, one 
ounce ; camphor, ten grains. This should be applied to 
the pimples on retiring at night. 

3. A good lotion for pimples is the following : Car- 
bolic acid, fifteen drops ; borax, one drachm ; glycerine, 
four drachms ; tannic acid, one- half drachm ; alcohol, 
one ounce ; rose-water, two and a half ounces. Dissolve 
and mix well together. Apply night and morning. 

4. This lotion for pimples is recommended by an 
authority : To five ounces of elder-flower water add one 
ounce of spirits of camphor and one drachm of milk of 
sulphur. Shake thoroughly. Wash the face at night 
with warm water and soap, and after drying the face ap- 
ply the lotion with a sponge, allowing it to dry on. 

5. White pimples should be pricked with a clean needle 
and the little mass gently pressed out. A little cold 
cream may then be applied to the spots. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 209 

6. A French beauty specialist recommends the follow- 
ing treatment : Boric acid powder, fifty grams ; magis- 
tery of sulphur, ten grams; distilled cherry laurel water, 
forty grams ; gum arable, twelve grams. If this does not 
effect the cure try the following : Magistery of sulphur, 
twelve grams ; sublimate of sulphur, eight grams ; recti- 
fied alcohol, twenty grams; rose-water, fifteen grams; 
tragacanth, six grams. Apply night and morning. This 
is a very strong remedy ; in fact a very radical cure for an 
acute attack of acne. 

Pipes. — To cleanse sink pipes. Put one quart of 
washing soda and four quarts of boiling water in a sauce- 
pan kept for this purpose. Place on the fire to dissolve 
the soda. Pour this liquid into the pipe of the sink, 
using an old funnel, as the liquid should not touch the tin 
or copper lining of the sink. This quantity of liquid is 
enough for two sinks. Do not pour water into the sink 
for an hour or more after using the hot soda. The soda 
unites with the grease clinging to the pipes, making a soap 
which will wash out later, leaving them clean and sweet. 

For bath tubs, basins and water-closets use one pound 
of soda dissolved in four quarts of hot water and then add 
four more quarts of boiling water. Pour this into the 
pipes through a funnel to cleanse them. 

Plumes. — See Feathers. 

Plush. — See Velvet. 



210 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

Poison. — Poison is indicated by sudden illness after 
eating accompanied by pain, retching or vomiting. If 
arsenic poison, pain, vomiting and purging will result ; 
if strychnine, spasms with more or less unconsciousness. 
Opium or morphine produce dullness, drowsiness or 
deep sleep. Carbolic acid may be detected by its odor. 
If the mouth and lips are burned the poison is a mineral 
acid, like sulphuric, muriatic or nitric. A physician 
should be sent for at once. Then, if an acid was 
swallowed, baking soda should be taken in large quanti- 
ties of water to neutralize it, and vomiting should be 
induced. 

It is necessary in all forms of poisoning for the sufferer 
to vomit. 

An emetic is the readiest way to accomplish the object. 
Give one tablespoonful of mustard stirred in a tumbler 
of lukewarm water; repeat several times if- neces- 
sary. 

Two tablespoonfuls of syrup or wine of ipecac makes 
an effective emetic ; also a small half teaspoonful (thirty 
grains) of white vitriol (sulphate of zinc) in half a tumbler 
of tepid water. 

Tickle the back of the throat with a feather, camel's 
hair brush or the finger. 

If the patient is unconscious, and not able to swallow 
readily, pry the mouth open and depress the tongue 
with a spoon. Pressing the jaws at the joints will usually 
force the mouth ooen. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 211 

Poisons and Antidotes 

Acids are antidotes for alkalies and alkalies are anti- 
dotes for acids. 

In poisoning by carbolic acid, give the victim a 
tablespoonful of Epsom salts stirred in water, and repeat. 
Flour and water, mucilaginous drinks may be given. 

OpiuMy morphine^ iaudanwn : Strong coffee should 
be given, and hot bath. Keep awake and moving until 
the doctor arrives. 

Arsenic: Tablespoonful doses of dialized iron, mag- 
nesia and castor oil ; raw eggs, milk, sweet-oil, lime 
water, flour and water. 

Oxalic acid : Give chalk, lime, lime water, or mag- 
nesia freely. 

Corrosive sublimate : White of egg and milk in quan- 
tities. 

Muriatic, acetic, sulphuric and nitric acids : Soap-suds, 
magnesia, lime water are the antidotes. 

Frussicacid : Ammonia in water. Dash water in face. 

Paris green, rat poison : Milk, raw eggs, sweet-oil, 
lime water, flour and water. 

Bug poison, lead, sugar of lead, blue vitriol : Whites 
of eggs or milk in large doses. 

Chloroform, chloral, ether : Dash cold water on head 
and chest. Artificial respiration. Piece of ice in rectum. 
No chemical antidote. 

Iodine, antimony, tartar emetic : Starch and water. 
Strong tea, tannin. 



212 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

Mercury and its salts : Whites of eggs, mucilages. 

Nitrate of silver, lunar caustic : Salt and water. 

Strychnine, tincture of nux vomica : Mustard and 
water, sulphate of zinc. Absolute quiet. Plug the ears. 

Bichromate of potash : Enaetics and magnesia and 
chalk. 

When the mucous membrane of the mouth is much 
inflamed or destroyed give raw eggs, flour stirred in 
water, flaxseed tea, arrowroot, or any soothing drink. 

Stimulation can be apphed by means of hot water 
bottles or bags to the feet and over the heart, and by 
rubbing the extremities. Alcoholic stimulant should be 
given very cautiously. 

Some poisons paralyze the stomach so that emetics will 
not act, in which case the stomach may be washed out 
if a long piece of rubber tubing or a fountain syringe 
can be obtained. Put a little oil or vaseline on the end 
of the tube, hold the tongue down with a teaspoon, push 
the tube as far back in the mouth as possible, that it may 
enter the food passage and not the air tract. When about 
eight or nine inches has passed down attach a funnel to 
the end, and, holding that or the bag of the fountain 
syringe above the head, pour in two or three pints of 
water. Lower the funnel below the level of the stomach 
and the water will run out. Repeat the process until it 
comes away clear. In a case of poisoning from strong 
acids, when the lining of the stomach and mouth are 
corroded, this means cannot be used. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 213 

Poison Ivy. — i. A remedy for ivy poisoning should 
be applied as soon as the itching begins. Bathe the 
affected parts with a solution of lead subacetate three or 
four times a day. Remember that the poison spreads by 
the breaking of the small pustules or blisters. The liquor 
they contain will start the poison wherever it touches the 
skin. 

2. Carbolic acid, one drachm ; glycerine, one-half 
ounce ; zinc oxide, four drachms ; lime water, one pint. 
Mix. Shake well and apply three times a day. 

3. A simple remedy for ivy poisoning is ordinary 
lard with sufficient prepared chalk rubbed into it to make 
a thick paste. Apply often, rubbing it in well. This is 
said to have cured many cases. 

4. A mixture of powdered bluestone (sulphate of 
copper) and buttermilk, one teaspoon of powder to one 
cup of milk, is another remedy for ivy poison. This 
should be sopped on frequently. 

5. Equal parts of sugar of lead and the best alcohol 
will remove the poison and stop it running its course. 

6. An ointment for poison oak poisoning : Ichthyol, 
two drachms ; carbolic acid, fifteen drops ; vaseline, 
six drachms. Mix. Apply twice daily. 

7. The powder of aristol is said to be a cure for 
this form of poisoning. It is dusted freely on the affected 
parts. 

8. A poultice of clay mud has cured many cases. 

9. Another effectual remedy is : Bromine, fifteen 

/ 



214 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

grains, rubbed in one ounce olive oil or glycerine. 
Apply three or four times daily, once at bedtime. 

Poultices. — I. Flaxseed poultice. To make a 
medium-size poultice have a cupful of water boiling in a 
saucepan ; stir in sufficient flaxseed meal (nearly a cup- 
ful) to make it stiff enough not to run when spread. 
Boil a couple of minutes, and then beat until it is light 
and spongy ; spread on cotton, leaving a margin to turn 
up on the poultice, and cover with old muslin. Good 
"drawing" poultice. 

2. Bread with milk makes a splendid poultice and 
domestic remedy for sores, boils, felons, etc. Baker's 
bread is the best because most porous. The milk should 
be brought nearly to boiling, and bread, free from crust, 
crumbled into it and cooked until the proper consistency 
is reached, adding a small piece of lard and applying 
warm or hot, as may be found most soothing. In all 
poultices it is generally best to let them come in direct 
contact with the part. They assist in producing 
resolution or scattering, if circumstances favor it, and if 
not, they favor the formation of pus and bring things to a 
head, or prepare them for breaking or the doctor's knife. 
The effect of a bread and milk poultice is very comforting. 
If it is desirable to hasten the formation of pus by the 
drawing process, baking soda should be added. This 
may easily be stirred in. The addition of soda makes 
the poultice quite painful but hastens the suppuration. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 215 

3. Corn-meal in the form of mush, well cooked, and 
with a little lard spread over it, makes a valuable poultice 
for the abdomen in painful affections of that part of the 
body. Care should be taken to make the poultice large, 
but not too thick, lest its weight make it uncomfortable. 

4. Crumbs of bread, soaked in a little cold vinegar, and 
then beaten with a stick to a smooth paste, makes a good 
poultice for bruises, black eyes and sprains. 

Powders. — i. Baby powders. Powdered French 
chalk and precipitated fuller's earth are good to use in 
powdering a baby. Lycopodium powder, a vegetable 
product, is valuable in severe cases of chafing. When a 
baby is chafed the parts should be washed in thin boiled 
starch, and patted dry, never rubbed. The powder 
should be shaken on from a powder puff, 

2. Powdered fuller's earth, nine ounces ; powdered 
boric acid, one and a half ounces ; powdered oxide 
zinc, three ounces \ powdered starch, nine ounces ; 
powdered orris-root, one and a half ounces ; oil of 
bergamot, two drachms. Mix the powders thoroughly, 
add the oil, and pass through a fine sieve. 

3. Oxide zinc, one-half ounce ; powdered starch, one 
and a half ounces ; boracic acid, twenty grains ; oil of 
eucalyptus, ten drops. Mix and rub very fine in a mor- 
tar. 

4. Purified talc, eight ounces ; powdered fuller's 
earth, four ounces ; lycopodium, four ounces ; oil of rose, 



2i6 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

five drops. Rub the oil of rose with the fuller's earth, 
add the other powders, mix thoroughly and pass through 
a fine sieve. • 

5. Carbolic acid, fifty drops ; boracic acid, one and 
a half ounces ; powdered French chalk, fourteen and a 
half ounces. 

6. Gum camphor, one-fourth ounce ; carbolic acid, 
fifteen drops; oxide zinc, three-fourths ounce; 
precipitated chalk, two ounces , oil of neroli, five drops ; 
oil of rose, two drops. Rub the camphor to a fine 
powder in a mortar ; use alcohol to reduce it, and mix 
the other ingredients thoroughly. Sift through a fine 
sieve or bolting cloth. This is a useful powder for heal- 
ing raw and irritated surfaces, chafing and sunburn. It 
may be mixed with vaseline or cold cream, three parts to 
one of the powder, and forms an effective healing salve. 

7. Lycopodium, one-half pound ; rose or violet 
toilet powder, one pound. An absorbent and healing 
powder for excoriated surfaces of infants. 

8. Face powder. An excellent face powder is made 
of: Precipitated chalk, four ounces ; talcum powder, 
three ounces ; subcarbonate of bismuth, one ounce ; 
oxide of zinc, two ounces; starch, four ounces. Mix 
and grind thoroughly. 

Prickly Heat. — i. The treatment of prickly heat is 
simple. If the eruption is local, bay rum or cologne is a 
cooling application, and should be followed by the use of 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 217 

powdered starch or a mixture of starch and oxide of zinc 
m the proportion of four to one. The skin should be 
gently dried with a soft towel. If there is much itching 
a lotion of bicarbonate of soda and water, one part of the 
powder to one hundred parts of water, may be applied to 
the affected parts with a soft cloth and allowed to dry. 
If the whole body is affected alkaline or bran baths 
nearly always give relief. For the former, four ounces of 
sodium bicarbonate to the tub of water may be used. 
The bran bath may be prepared by putting into the 
water a bag of five or six pounds of bran. The bag 
should be squeezed from time to time to diffuse the 
mucilaginous part of its contents through the water. 
After the bath the skin should be gently dried without 
any friction and powdered with the starch. Ointments 
should never be used. 

2. A powder for prickly heat to be dusted on the 
skin: Subnitrate of bismuth, one-half ounce; carbonate 
of zinc, one-half ounce. 

3. The following lotion is good to apply to the skin 
after bathing : Carbolic acid, one-half drachm ; boric 
acid, one drachm ; zinc oxide, one and a half drachms ; 
glycerine, two drachms ; alcohol, two ounces ; water, 
sufficient to make six ounces. 

Putty. — When it is desired to remove old putty from 
sash apply a hot iron to the putty and pass it slowly 
over all that is to be removed. The putty is softened 



21 8 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

and can then be easily removed. Any iron that is 
of such a shape as to allow its close contact with the 
putty will do. A strong, hot solution of quicklime and 
potash or soda applied and left on twelve hours will also 
soften dry putty. Soft soap also will render putty soft so 
that it can be easily removed. 

Radiators may be freshened up by a coat of bronze- 
powder dissolved in banana oil. 

Rash. — A soothing lotion for rashes which are com- 
mon in hot weather is made of: Seven ounces of elder- 
flower water, one ounce of glycerine and one-half drachm 
of borax. This may be applied night and morning, and 
during the day if required. 

Rats. — ^i. A deadly rat poison is made in the follow- 
ing manner : Mix one-half ounce of sulphate of strych- 
nine and one-half ounce of sugar of milk ; add ten grains 
of Prussian blue and one ounce of arsenic ; and finally 
add four ounces of wheat flour, and mix thoroughly. 
Moisten a suitable quantity and make a dough ; divide 
into small piles and dry. Distribute these in the rat holes 
or places frequented by them. These pills are very 
[)oisonous and must be handled carefully. 

2. A simple exterminator is made of two parts of 
bruised common squills and three parts of finely chopped 
bacon made into a stiff mass with meal and baked in 
small cakes. The cakes are then laid around for the rats 
to eat. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 219 

3. Crystals of copperas scattered in every hole and 
crevice and in the corners, is said to drive rats away. 
The walls of the cellar should be whitewashed with white- 
wash made yellow with copperas. 

4. Chloride of lime scat-tered freely in their holes and 
about the infested places has been known to drive rats 
away. 

Refrigerator. — It is good practice to wash the lining 
of a refrigerator occasionally with a solution made by dis- 
solving a teaspoonful of sweet spirits of nitre in two 
quarts of cold water. To scour zinc or other Hnings that 
have become stained use sand soap, or soap and fine sand 
or sifted wood ashes. Any good scouring soap may also 
be used. 

Rheumatism. — i. An excellent liniment for rheu- 
matism, the use of which affords relief, is made of: 
Tincture of aconite, one-half ounce ; chloroform, one- 
half ounce ; oil of turpentine, one-half ounce ; oil of sas- 
safras, five drops; camphorated soap liniment, two and 
a half ounces. For external use only. Rub in well. 

2. Ointment, Menthol, fifty grains; salicylic acid, 
two drachms ; ichthyol, two drachms ; lanolin, two 
ounces. Mix. Apply to painful parts twice daily} 
cover with cotton. 

Ringworm. — i. Ringworms come often to perfectly 
healthy persons, and with no provocation whatever. 



220 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

They do not yield readily to treatment. Wash the ring- 
worm three or four times a day with a strong solution of 
borax in hot water. A simple and effective remedy. 

2. Another remedy, prescribed by a medical authority, 
is : Oil of liquid tar, one-half drachm ; resublimed naph- 
thol, one-half drachm ; sulphur, one drachm ; lanolin, 
five drachms. This should be applied locally night and 
morning. 

Rose-water for toilet and culinary purposes is made 
as follows : Attar of rose, twelve drops ; rub it up with 
half an ounce of powdered sugar and two drachms of car- 
bonate of magnesia ; then add gradually one quart of 
water and two ounces of proof spirit, and filter through 
paper. 

Rubber Articles. — To mend, cut a dark rubber band 
into strips, and rub the strips with fine sandpaper. Rub 
the broken place in the rubber article with fine sandpaper. 
Rub a little bicycle cement on and around the broken 
piece, and let it dry slightly. Put a little cement on the 
bands and let them dry a little, then put them over the 
break, crossing them, and pressing them down. Bicycle 
cement can be purchased in small tubes. 

Rugs. — I. The way to wash an ingrain rug is to beat 
it thoroughly and spread it on a clean, bare floor. Have 
ready a pail of hot water and some soap. Wash with 
soap and water the soiled parts, using a small scrubbing 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 221 

brush ; then wash the rug all over with soapy water ; 
wipe off with a cloth or sponge wrung or squeezed out of 
clear, hot water, then wipe with dry cloths. When ox- 
gall can be obtained it should be used in place of soap ; 
as it is very cleansing. Fuller's earth mixed with lemon 
juice, rubbed on the dry rug, and allowed to stand sev- 
eral days, then brushed off, will also clean the rug. See 
Carpets. 

2. Oriental rugs or ingrain rugs may be washed va 
soap and water; and they may also be hung on a line and 
washed by turning the hose on them, but they should not 
be beaten very hard. 

Rust, to Prevent. — i. Articles of iron, such as 
stoves that are not in use, the casing of the furnace, tools, 
etc., should be protected from rust. They may be 
rubbed with any kind of liquid fat, free from salt, or a 
good coat of kerosene or linseed oil given them. At 
paint shops a varnish can be bought for this purpose. 

2. Any steel articles, such as tools, may be made 
rust-proof in the following manner : Make a solution of 
two hundred parts of benzine and one part of paraffine 
oil. Dip the article in the solution and allow it to dry in 
heated air or in a dry room so that the benzine may 
evaporate. 

3. A solution of India rubber in benzine will keep ar- 
ticles of steel, iron and lead from rusting. It should be 
about the consistency of cream, and applied with a brush. 



222 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

4. A paste made of whiting and linseed oil will keep 
iron from rusting. 

5. Steel articles can be preserved from rust, it is said, 
by putting a lump of freshly burnt lime in the drawer or 
case in which they are kept. * Articles in use may be 
placed in a box nearly filled with thoroughly pulverized 
slaked lime. They should be rubbed with a woolen cloth 
before they are used. 

6. To .prevent stoves from rusting when not in use, 
apply kerosene liberally with a cloth, wrap up and keep 
in a dry place. Iron tools and utensils can be preserved 
in the same manner. 

7. Nickel-plated articles should be wiped clean, and 
then smeared over with a mixture of two parts vaseline 
and one-half part paraffine, to which, add a half part of 
fine quicklime by heating and stirring. Apply this mix- 
ture warm, then wrap the articles in paper that has been 
coated on one side with the mixture very thin. 

Rust, to Remove. — i. To remove rust from nickel- 
plating, cover the spots with mutton tallow, and let it re- 
main a few days; then rub with finely powdered rotten- 
stone or with tripoli and oil. Wash off with strong suds 
or with ammonia water. Give the final polish with 
whiting. 

2. Rust may often be removed in this manner : Cover 
the spots with mutton tallow; over this put powdered 
quicklime. Let it remain a few days, then rub off. Rub 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 223 

clean with paper and a soft cloth. Any remaining 
t races of rust may be rubbed with fine sandpaper. Sweet- 
oil may be used in place of mutton tallow. 

3. Muriatic acid will remove iron rust from a marble 
or porcelain bowl. If the bowl can be made hot the stain 
will yield to the acid more quickly than when the surface 
is cold. Fill the bowl or tub with hot water and then 
empty it ; moisten the spot with the acid, pour boiling 
water on it and it will disappear. When all the stains 
have been removed, rinse with ammonia and water ; then 
rinse with cold water. Do the work as quickly as possi- 
ble with marble, as the acid is apt to dissolve it. Some- 
times a stain which looks like rust, but is not, will not 
yield to this treatment, but will disappear if rubbed with 
wood alcohol. 

Rust Stains. — i. Stains from iron rust can be re- 
moved from washable goods in the following manner : 
Fill B. large bowl with boiling water. Have a second 
bowl filled with hot water. Place the spotted part of the 
garment over the bowl of hot water. Wet a cork with 
muriatic acid and touch the iron rust with it. The spot 
will turn a bright yellow. Dip it irf the boiHng water 
and the stain will disappear. Continue the work until 
all the stains have been removed. Rinse the garment 
thoroughly in several waters. In the second rinsing put 
one tablespoonful of ammonia. This will neutralize any 
trace of the acid that may remain in the cloth. The 



224 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 



# 



subsequent rinsings will clear the fabric of the acid and 
the alkali. Two ounces of muriatic acid will remove a 
great deal of rust. Do not keep it near tins, as it injures 
them. 

2. Stains of iron rust may be removed from table 
linen and other white goods with lemon-juice and salt. 
Soak the stain thoroughly with lemon juice ; sprinkle 
with fine salt, and bleach for several hours in the sun. 

3. Another way to remove rust-spots is to dip the 
stained fabric several times into sour milk, each time dry- 
ing in the sun, and the stains will fade away. 

4. Oxalic acid will remove stains caused by rust. 
Dissolve one-half teaspoonful of the acid by pouring upon 
it two or three tablespoonfuls of hot water. Dip the 
stained part in this solution, or wet it with a sponge or 
cloth ; and as soon as the rust is bleached out wash the 
garment or fabric with clean water so the acid will not 
injure the goods. 

Salt* — A good way to keep salt dry in shakers is to 
keep a glass tumbler turned over the shaker. This keeps 
the salt dry so that it may be sprinkled without difficulty. 

Salves. — I. An excellent healing-salve is made of a 
prepared powder and vaseline or cold cream as follows : 
Gum camphor, one-fourth ounce ; carbolic acid, fifteen 
drops ; oxide of zinc, three-fourths ounce ; English pre- 
cipitated chalk, two ounces ; oil of neroli, five drops ; oil 
of rose, two drops. Rub the camphor to a fine powder ; 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 225 

use alcohol to reduce it, and mix in the other ingredients, 
stirring thoroughly. Mix in the proportion of three parts 
of vaseline or cold cream. 

2. A good salve for burns ^ sores ^ etc., is made of 
vaseline, ten ounces ; white wax, five ounces ; balsam of 
fir and carbolic acid, each one ounce. Melt the vaseline 
and wax together, then add the fir, and when it begins 
to thicken by cooling, stir in the carbolic acid, and put 
in a suitable jar, covered tightly. 

3. Salve for chapped lips and hands. Take two 
ounces white wax, one ounce of spermaceti, four ounces 
of oil of almonds, two ounces of honey, one-fourth ounce 
of essence of bergamot or other scent. Melt the wax 
and spermaceti ; add the honey and melt all together, 
and when hot, add the almond oil, stirring it until cold. 

Satin. — I. Satin may be cleansed with a weak solu- 
tion of borax or benzine when greasy. Care should 
be taken to sponge moderately and lengthwise, not across 
the fabric ; iron on the wrong side only. White and 
light-colored satins may be treated in the same way as 
light-colored silks. See Silk. 

2. By boiling three pounds of potatoes to pulp in a 
quart of water and straining through a sieve, a solution 
is obtained that can be used to clean black satin. Brush 
the satin with it on a board or table. The satin must 
not be wrung, but folded down in cloths for three hours, 
then ironed on the wrong side. 



226 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

Scald. — All application of common whiting and oil, or 
V. .iier, if oil be not at hand, draws the fire out of the scald 
;ii) I gives immediate relief. Make the ingredients into a 
1 asteand lay it over the part affected, covering it up with 
some old linen and cotton wadding. See Burns. 

Scale on plants can be got rid of by using fir-tree oil 
soap. Use it as soon as scale is found on plants, and 
use it liberally and frequently to prevent the return of 
scale. 

Scorch Stains. — When a white garment is scorched 
it can generally be whitened again by soaking in lukewarm 
water and squeezing lemon juice over it. Sprinkle with 
salt and spread in the sun to bleach. 

Scratches. — i. An excellent healing lotion for 
scratches and little cuts is : Spirits of camphor, one 
ounce ; glycerine, one-fourth drachm ; borax, one-eighth 
drachm; carbolic acid, five grains. This may be ap- 
plied twice a day. 

2. Another good one is : Suet or lanolin, one ounce ; 
camphor, twenty grains ; glycerine, one half ounce. 
Melt these ingredients together ; then pour the mixture 
into a vessel and allow it to cool. 

Seasickness. — i. To prevent seasickness a doctor 
recommends eight grains of orexin tannatis, taken in 
half a pint of milk or tea, three hours before the ship 
sails, and two hours later a heavy meal should be eaten. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 227 

2. Ten or twelve drops of chloroform is said to cure 
sea:3ickness. The smelling of chloroform a few times will 
relieve much of the nausea attending seasickness. 

3. Bromide of sodium in doses of ten grains, three 
Limes a day, has been found to be an effectual remedy. 

4. A recumbent position is best, keeping the eyes 
closed as much as possible, 'If one is up and sbfsmt one 
eye should be shaded or covered with a handkerchief. 

5. To relieve seasickness the following prescription is 
recommended : CarboUc acid, one drop ; spirits of 
chloroform, four drops ; alcohol, one-half drachm ; water, 
sufficient to make one ounce. One-half is to be taken 
immediately, the remainder in one-half hour if necessary. 

Sewer Gas. — A suspected joint in a sewer or drain 
pipe may be tested by wrapping it with a single layer of 
white muslin, moistened with a solution of acetate of lead. 
As the gas escapes through the meshes of the cloth it will 
be blackened by the sulphur compounds. 

x\noiher mode is as follows : Mix two pounds of dark 
soap in six pints of water. Apply this sticky paste to the 
pipe, when, if an escape of gas is taking place, bubbles 
will be seen on the liquid, thus indicating the position of 
the gas escape. 

Shampoo. — See Hair. 

Shirt. — The right way to iron a shirt is to begin by 
folding it lengthwise from the gathers of the yoke to the 



228 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

tail and ironing both sides of the back. After this the 
wrist bands should be ironed and polished if necessary ; 
the sleeves should be taken in hand and finished, care be- 
ing taken to press them in proper shape. When this is 
done take the shirt by the shoulders and turn it front up- 
ward on the board, with the collar to the left hand. 
After putting in any necessary plaits in the back insert 
the shirt-board and proceed with the front. Before com- 
mencing to iron, the front should be pulled into shape, 
after which it should be ironed until thoroughly dry, do- 
ing one side at a time, and being careful to avoid making 
creases. When both sides are done pin the collar or 
neckband together and run the iron down the center and 
across the base of the front, afterward ironing the remain- 
ing unstarched portions of the garment. When this is 
done carefully turn the shirt front downward on the board 
and fold neatly, pinning the shoulders together lo round 
the front somewhat. Then hang the shirt before the fire 
to dry and harden the work. When the fronts have to 
be polished the convex iron should be made as hot as 
possible short of scorching the goods, and at the point 
previously mentioned, instead of pinning the collar to- 
gether take out the flannel and put in a board covered 
with one thickness of linen only, and after dampening the 
surface of one-half the front, polish with the convex iron 
by quickly passing it across from side to side, and then 
from base to collar, using considerable pressure and 
working with the back of the iron as far as possible. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 229 

Treat the other half of the front in a similar manner ; pin 
the collar and proceed as before. When properly pol- 
ished the fronts should be as smooth and shiny as china 
and the polish should stand without dulling off. Shirts 
or front having raised patterns are ironed to the polishing 
point, then dampened down on the surface and covered 
with a fine linen cloth, then ironed until dry. Shirt 
fronts will not blister if the starch is thin and well rubbed 
in from the wrong side. After the shirts are rinsed 
have your clear starch made and the bosoms so folded that 
not one particle will touch the right side. Then rub it in 
thoroughly from the wrong side. Afterward hang the 
shirts to dry. When you are folding the shirts make a 
clear starch — a tablespoon ful of starch to a quart of water 
will be quite sufficient. Fold the shirts again. Only the 
wrong side of the bosom must come in contact with this 
boihng hot starch. Dip them in, \^ing quickly, shake 
the shirt, fold and roll tightly ; then iron. If a polish is 
wanted use a regular round polishing iron ; by a quick 
wrist motion, a sort of rolling motion with the butt of the 
iron, a polish is easily produced. 

Any of the following named substances, when put into 
boiled starch, will help to make the garment iron 
smoothly and take a gloss : Borax, sugar, salt, wax, 
lard, turpentine, spermaceti. See Starch. 

Shirt-waist. — When ironing a shirt-waist, turn the 
sleeves on the wrong side, and leave them until all the 



230 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

rest of the waist is ironed, then turn and iron them last. 
Hang on the clothes horse until perfectly dry. 

Shoes. — I. A good way to prevent shoes from 
squeaking is to pour a small quantity of sweet or linseed 
oil upon a flat surface and allow the shoes to stand upon 
it over night. Another plan is to have one or two 
wooden pegs driven into the center of the soles. 

2. The following paste for patent leather shoes is 
very satisfactory and easily made : Add to some pure 
wax which has been melted in a hot water bath, some 
olive oil and then some lard. Mix thoroughly by stirring 
over a fire. Add some oil of turpentine, and a little oil 
of lavender. This will form a paste which should be put 
in boxes. Apply with a soft rag. This paste keeps the 
leather soft and restores the gloss. 

3. Sweet milk fs good for patent a7id enameled shoes. 
Remove all dust and dirt from the shoes, then wash the 
uppers thoroughly with the milk. Let the shoes stand a 
minute with the milk on them, then wipe with a soft, dry 
cloth. This treatment keeps shoes bright and soft with- 
out any other polish or dressing. 

4. To clean and polish tan shoes the following treat- 
ment is recommended : Wet a soft rag with water into 
which a few drops of household ammonia has been 
poured. Rub the rag with ivory or Castile soap and rub 
the shoe, keeping one hand inside the shoe to hold it in 
shape. Do not make the leather too wet. When the 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 231 

shoes have become perfectly dry, rub them with a soft 
flannel rag until they shine. This treatment keeps the 
shoes soft and pliable and glossy as when new. 

5. Shoes that have become stiff and uncomfortable by 
being worn in the rain, or that have been lying unused 
for some time, may be made soft by vaseline well rubbed 
in with a cloth and rubbed off with a dry cloth. Kero- 
sene oil also softens hard shoes, but it should be followed 
by a coat or two of either neatsfoot or castor oil to keep 
them soft. 

6. White kid shoes can be cleaned by dipping a per- 
fectly clean piece of white flannel in a little ammonia 
water and rubbing the cloth over a cake of white soap ; 
after which gently rub the kid until the soiled places are 
white again. As the flannel becomes soiled, change for 
a clean one. 

7. White satifi and canvas shoes may be cleaned by 
being rubbed gently with a soft rag dipped in spirits of 
wine. Do this several times ; then wipe the shoe care- 
fully with a soft, clean cloth. 

8. Kid shoes that are slightly defaced may be much 
improved by being rubbed with a mixture of cream and ink. 

9. A solution of one ounce solid paraffine in one 
pint naphtha lo which six drops sweet-oil have been 
added put on to the soles until they absorb no more, and 
one coat on the uppers, preserves the leather and makes 
it waterproof. Copal varnish applied to soles also makes 
them impervious to moisture. 



232 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

Silk. — I. There are several ways to clean silks. If 
there are grease spots in the fabric they can be removed 
by using a lump of magnesia and rubbing it on wet if 
the color will endure water ; or tear a visiting card 
apart, and with the soft inside part rub until the grease 
disappears. French chalk removes grease and does not 
injure colored silks. Scrape a little on the spot, rub it 
in, and let it remain twenty-four hours, then brush it off. 
Repeat the process if necessary. Another method is to 
sponge the silk on the wrong side with warm water and 
alcohol, one-third of the latter to twice as much water, 
and iron on the same side with a barely warm iron until 
tlie silk is dry. 

Sponging with hot strained coffee is good for grosgrain 
silk which is apt to have a greasy appearance. Shake 
the silk in the air to remove part of the liquid but never 
wring it. 

A French method is to sponge the silk on both sides 
with spirits of wine, and then iron on the wrong side 
with a j)iece of crinoline between it and the iron. 

2. Before black silk is cleaned, all grease spots 
should be removed. A good way to clean black silk is 
carried out as follows : Place each piece on a smooth, 
clean table, using a wad of the material you are cleaning 
for a sponge, and rub with this dipped in the cleaning 
fluid in downward strokes until each piece is wet. The 
fluid may be equal parts of warm water and alcohol ; it 
may be cold coffee well strained, or a pint of water 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 233 

in which an old black glace kid glove has been boiled. 
Sponge the goods on what will be the right side when 
made up, as some silks can be turned after being worn. 
Hang each piece on a line to drip ; when nearly dry, 
but still quite damp, iron with a moderately warm 
iron on the wrong side, placing a piece of soft, black 
goods between the iron and the silk ; and ironing each 
piece until it is perfectly dry. Then lay the pieces 
away without folding them. Cut the selvage here and 
there to prevent drawing. 

The ironing should always be done on the wrong side 
and over a second fabric which should be black if the 
material is dark colored. To the cleansing fluid made 
by boiling an old glove should be added a teaspoonful of 
ammonia and a wineglassful of hot water. 
. 3. Black silk that is simply very dusty and grayish 
in appearance should be sponged with lukewarm water 
in which a tablespoon ful of borax has been dissolved to 
each pint of water. 

4. Silk that has become limp may have its stiffness 
restored by sponging it with a liquid composed of a pint 
of hot water in which has been dissolved a generous 
quarter of an ounce of powdered gum tragacanth ; strain 
when the gum is dissolved and use while it is warm. 

5. Black ribbons are cleaned just as black silk is, 
and may be ironed or rolled smoothly over a broom 
handle until dry. If the ribbon is really soiled, brush it 
softly or sponge it with a tablespoonful each of alcohol, 



234 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

soft soap and molasses ; mix well, and after using as a 
cleanser rinse the ribbon in cold water; roll up in an old 
cloth, and iron when partly dry with a moderately hot iron. 

6. China silk and other soft silks, when care- 
lessly washed, turn yellow. But if washed in the follow- 
ing manner, such silks will remain white : Wash the 
garment or the pieces of silk with warm water and ivory 
soap. Put a few drops of ammonia in the water to soften 
it. Rinse two or three times in clear, cold water; then 
do not hang the silk up to dry, but wrap each part of it 
separately in white cotton cloth and dry in the house. 
When it is dry, raw-starch it and then iron. Do not 
rinse it in water to which bluing has been added. 

7. White silk handkerchiefs will remai?t white, in- 
stead of turning yellow, if soused in a suds of white 
soap and lukewarm water, rinsed, rolled up to dry, and 
ironed with a protection against an iron of even moder- 
ate heat. 

8. Pongee silk may be washed in tepid suds and a 
little salt ; rinse ; dry in the shade ; roll up in a clean 
sheet for a day and iron on the wrong side. 

9. White silk may be kept from turniiig yellow by 
being folded in blue tissue paper. 

10. Summer silks, before being washed, should be 
cleansed of grease spots, if there are any, with chloro 
form; then washed in suds made of soap and tepid 
water, adding a teaspoonful of ammonia to a pail of 
water. Dip the silk again and again until it is clean. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 235 

Do not wring, but press it between the hands. Rinse in 
water from which the chill is gone, hang in a shady 
place until partly dry, then place between two cloths 
and iron until it is dry. 

Grease spots can also be removed by rubbing them 
with benzine before washing. 

11. Silk stockings should be washed and rinsed in 
lukewarm water, then wrung between towels. 

Silk uftderwear should be soaked half an hour in 
warm suds and ammonia water, allowing a tablespobnful 
of ammonia to a gallon of water. Rub gently with the 
hands, pressing and squeezing but not rubbing on the 
board. Do not use too much soap and do not put soap 
directly on the garment. Rinse • through two warm 
waters the same temperature as the suds, adding to the 
last a trifle of ultra-marine blue and a teaspoonful of 
liquid gum arable. Iron under muslin. 

12. To clean colored silks without washing g2i^o\m^ 
and naphtha may be used. Two large bowls should be 
used, and each should be half full with the cleansing 
fluid. Wash the article in one bowl, as if you were using 
water, and rinse in the second bowl. Pull into shape and 
hang in the open air to dry. It must be remembered that 
the gas given off by the naphtha or gasoline is very dan- 
gerous if not allowed to escape into the open air. The 
work should be done in a room where there is no light 
nor a fire, and the windows should be open so that the 
vapor may pass out. 



236 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

13. Black silk-warp goods will shine as they wear, 
and expose the silk threads. Sponging with alcohol and 
water is said to partly remove the gloss, although the 
same usually returns again, in which case the silk must 
be redyed. 

14. To wash colored silk and colored silk handker- 
chiefs make a good suds in lukewarm water, in which a 
little bit of carbonate of ammonia has been dissolved, rub 
the silk or handkerchief lightly in the hands until all 
spots have disappeared. Then rinse in lukewarm water, 
squeezing as dry as possible. Shake the goods out ; roll 
in a soft towel, squeeze tightly, and iron at once. 

Silverware. — i. Borax is good in cleaning silver- 
ware. Dissolve a tablespoonful of borax in hot water ; 
put the silverware in, take it out immediately and lay it 
on a soft linen cloth, then rub each piece quickly with 
dry chamois skin. Plated ware treated this way always 
looks new, bright and clean. 

2. A perfectly safe substance for cleaning sterling and 
plated ware is found in French whiting. Such whiting, 
wet with water, is all that is required. If the silver is 
much discolored it should be wet with alcohol. This 
produces a brilliant polish. The whiting should be sifted 
through a hair sieve or a piece of muslin, to guard 
against anything gritty that might scratch the silver. 

3. To remove yellow coating fro7n silver dissolve one 
ounce cyanide of potassium in one quart of water. Dip 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 237 

the spoons in this solution and the sulphide of silver will 
be removed. This solution is extremely poisonous. 
Keep it in a bottle that is tightly corked and labeled 
''Poison." 

4. Wet salt or ammonia, it is said, will remove tarnish 
from silverware. A fresh, concentrated solution of hypo- 
sulphite of soda also will remove tarnish. 

5. The following is an excellent polish for silver- 
ware : Put four ounces of French whiting into a pint of 
soft water, and boil it ; when it is cool, bottle it and add 
one ounce of aqua ammonia. Rub the silver with a cloth 
wet with this mixture, and polish with chamois skin. 

6. Excellent polishing cloths for silver are prepared 
by dipping pieces of soft muslin or linen into a boiHng 
solution of two ounces of carbonate of ammonia and one 
pint of soft water. Dip the cloths into this solution, and 
hang them up to dry without wringing them. Simply 
rubbing the silver with one of these cloths greatly im- 
proves its appearance. 

7. Unbleached canton flannel and sheets of tissue 
paper make the best wrappings for silver. ■ The silver 
tray may be lined with the flannel, and a covering of the 
same goods be made to spread over the silver. Large 
pieces of silver should be put in separate bags of the flan- 
nel. Silver should not be kept in woolen bags, as the 
sulphur in woolen cloth tarnishes the metal. Rubber 
should not be placed near silver. 

8. To protect silver from tarnishing it should be 



238 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

wrapped in cloths that have been dipped in the following : 
Dissolve three ounces of washing soda in one pint of boil- 
ing water ; add to this two ounces of oxide of zinc. Stir 
well and add one quart of cold water. Dip pieces of 
canton flannel in this and dry them without wringing. 
A lump of camphor placed in the box in which silver is 
kept will keep it from becoming tarnished. 

Sink. — There is nothing any better to clean a kitchen 
sink than hot water and ammonia. Add a tablespoonful 
of the ammonia to each quart of water and scrub well. 
Dissolve a pound of sulphate of iron or copperas in four 
gallons of hot water, put into pint bottles, and pour the 
contents of one down the sink hole about once a week. 
This dissolves collections and destroys offensive odors. 

A strong hot sal soda solution is good for cleaning out 
the drain pipe. See Pipes. 

Skin. — I. Fineness of the skin depends largely upon 
the manner of bathing. A cold bath is a good tonic, but 
it does not cleanse nor beautify the skin. Baths in which 
milk, bran or starch are' placed, are found to whiten the 
coarsest and reddest skin, if persistently used. Beautify- 
ing baths are described under Bath. A delightful and 
refreshing preparation for the skin, to be applied after the 
bath, is : Best white vinegar, one pint ; rosemary, rue, 
camphor and lavender, of each two drachms. Soak the 
herbs in the vinegar for several hours, then strain the 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 239 

liquor. Rub thoroughly all over the body immediately 
after the bath. 

2. A teaspoonful of the tincture of benzoin to an 
ounce of rose-water forms a well-known lotion for whiten- 
ing the skin. 

3. Oil of almonds, and almonds, are very good for 
the skin ; the former is a good substitute for cold cream, 
and the latter, crushed, may be used instead of soap. 
Lemon juice also may be used in place of soap. 

Half a teaspoonful of glycerine and rose-water, mixed 
well with a little warm water and used daily, will do much 
toward keeping the skin soft. 

4. A good skin food is made of : White petrolatum, 
fourteen ounces; paraffine wax, one ounce; lanolin, four 
ounces ; water, six ounces ; oil of rose, five drops ; va- 
nillin, four grains; alcohol, two drachms. 

5. Irritations of the skin are benefited by bathing 
with warm water to which borax has been added, a tea- 
spoonful to a quart of water. 

6. For all affections of the skin the following dress- 
ing is beneficial : Carbolic acid, two drachms ; hydro- 
chlorate of morphine, one-half drachm ; tincture of ar- 
nica, five drachms; tincture of aconite, five drachms; 
balsam of Peru, twelve drachms ; glycerine, twenty-five 
drachms. Mix. Apply and cover with a piece of clean 
linen. Repeat once or twice daily. 

7. A camphorated powder that is very good for skin 
eruptions is made of : Powdered camphor, twenty grains ; 



240 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

powdered talcum, one-half ounce; oxide of zinc, two 
drachms; powdered starch, two drachms. Mix, and 
dust the affected parts freely. 

8. For inflamination of the skin and other affections 
use a preparation composed of pure carbolic acid, one 
ounce; powdered camphor, two ounces; alcohol, two and 
a half drachms. Mix ; and paint upon the skin or apply 
a piece of absorbent cotton moistened with the above to 
the affected spot and bandage. 

9. To whiten the skin of the shoulders and ?ieck, this 
is an excellent recipe. It may be used twice a day and 
left on to dry : Borax, forty grains ; sodium hyposulphite, 
three hundred and seventy-five grains ; glycerine, five 
drachms ; distilled water, fourteen ounces ; cologne 
water, one ounce ; oil of neroli, six drops ; essence of 
jasmine, ten drops. 

10. Sulphur ointment made by adding ten grains 
of precipitated sulphur to an ounce of vaseline is good 
to use for skin eruptions, eczema, pimples, etc. 

11. French balsain, for rough and cracked skin, 
consists of equal parts of glycerine and ^gg albumin. 
Perfume with a few drops of any suitable essence. 

12. Take of pale honey four ounces ; glycerine, one 
ounce ; unite by a gentle heat ; add one fluid ounce 
of rectified spirits and six drops of suitable perfume; also 
three drachms of citric acid. This preparation is used 
to remove discolorations of the skin. 

13. Enlarged pores give the skin the appearance of 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 241 

being of coarse texture. The remedy is to stimulate the 
functions of the skin. Steaming the face will do much 
toward closmg the pores ; and the skin can be stimulated 
by drinking three pints of hot water every day, and 
bathing tlie face twice a day with a hot solution of pure 
borax, one teaspoonful of borax to a pint of water, then 
bathe or sponge for five or ten minutes with clear cold 
water, until the skin is in a healthy glow ; dry with a 
soft towel but do not rub the skin. Too much friction 
often causes redness, roughness and irritation. After 
bathing, the skin should be bathed every other night 
with a good cold cream. See Creams. 

Sleeplessness (Insomnia). — i. The smell of mint 
is said to be an effectual remedy for sleeplessness. A 
sponge is soaked in mint perfume and put into a thin 
bag. This bag may be suspended at the head of the 
bed or it may be placed on or under the pillow. 

2. A good sedative that is soothing and restful when 
one is fatigued is made of: Two ounces of spirits of 
camphor, two ounces of ammonia, a cup and a half of 
sea salt and two cups of alcohol. Pour these ingredients 
into a quart bottle and fill it with boiling water. Sponge 
the body with the solution ; and at once lie down. 

3. If sleeplessness is caused by mental overwork, 
sleep can be induced by practicing the following exercise 
fifty times :'■> Stand erect, rise slowly from the heels and 
descend slowly. This will cause the blood vessels of 



242 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

the lower limbs to congest, relieving the brain of the 
excess of blood. 

4. Bromide of calcium is a good remedy for in- 
somnia. The dose is from fifteen to thirty grains for an 
adult. 

5. A simple remedy for sleeplessness is to wet half a 
towel, apply it to the back of the neck, pressing it up 
ward to the base of the brain, and fastening the dry 
half of the towel over so as to prevent too rapid evapora- 
tion. The effect is prompt and charming, cooling the 
brain and inducing refreshing sleep. Cold water should 
be used. 



Smelling-salts. — i. Oil of lavender, one-fourth 
fluid ounce ; caustic spirits of ammonia, three-eighths 
of a pint. Saturate with this preparation a bit of sponge, 
and place it in the vinaigrette ; or pour it onto crystals 
of potassium sulphate with which you have first filled 
the vinaigrette. This preparation is excellent in cases of 
faintness or headache. 

2. Sal tartar, three drachms; muriate ammonia, granu- 
lated, six drachms; oil neroli, five minims; oil lavender, 
five minims ; oil rose, three minims ; spirits ammonia, 
fifteen minims. Put into the vinaigrette a small piece 
of sponge filling about one-fourth the space and pour on 
it a due proportion of the oils, then put fti the mixed 
salts until the bottle is three-fourths full, then pour on 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 243 

the spirits of ammonia in proper proportion and close the 
bottle. 

Snake-bite. — i. The first step is to keep the poison 
from getting into the circulation in general. Cut off the 
flow of blood to the heart by tying a cord, rope, necktie 
or anything convenient a short distance from the bitten 
spot and between the latter and the heart. If you have 
no sores on your mouth or lips, suck the wound, being 
careful to spit out the blood that comes from it. The 
wound then should be made larger with a clean, sharp 
knife so as to cause the blood to flow freely ; and if you 
have pluck enough thrust a hot iron or live coal into it, 
so as to cauterize the bite. A drop of pure carbolic acid 
may also be applied to the wound ; or a strong solution 
of permanganate of potash — one ounce to a pint of water, 
or strong spirits of ammonia may be poured into the 
wound. Whiskey should be drunk freely. After a while 
the string is loosened a little to allow the poison, if any 
remains, to be absorbed into the system that no serious 
results are likely to follow. See also Bites. 

Snoring. — It is claimed that six drops of olive oil 
poured upon a pinch of mustard and taken internally 
just before retiring, will prevent snoring. 

Soap. — I. A good soft soap for domestic purposes 
is made in the following manner : Hard soap, three 
pounds ; sal soda, one pound ; aqua ammonia and oil 



244 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES * 

of turpentine, each one ounce ; soft water, three gallons. 
Boil the water and dissolve in it the soap and soda ; re- 
move from the fire and stir in the others. Good soap is 
also made by omitting the ammonia or turpentine. If a 
scent is desired an ounce of oil of sassafras may be 
added. 

2. A soap in the form of a soft jelly very useful for 
removing grease from floors, shelves, etc., also for 
general cleaning and even for washing very dirty clothes 
is made of sal soda, three-fourths pound; bar soap, 
one pound ; cut into small pieces ; put them into a 
stone jar on the back of the stove or range, when not 
very hot, and pour over all a pailful of cold water ; stir 
once in a while, and after some hours, when all dissolved, 
put away to cool. 

3. The best way to make soap from refuse grease is 
to buy a box of concentrated lye of the grocer and follow 
the directions on the box. Or, 

4. Here is a good rule for soft soap : Put seven 
pounds of crude potash into a wooden pail and pour 
over it enough boiling water to cover it. Stir well, and 
let the mixture stand over night. In the morning pour 
this mixture into a kettle and place on the fire ; then add 
half a pailful of boiling water. Stir frequently with a 
stick until the potash is dissolved. Next put five quarts 
of soap grease in a water-tight barrel, and gradually pour 
the hot potash upon it, stirring all the time. Stir until 
all the grease is united with the potash. Let it rest for 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 245 

three hours ; then add half a pailful of hot water, and 
stir well. Add another half a pailful three hours later. 
After this add a pailful each day for six days, stirring 
well each time. The soap should be stirred each day 
for the next twenty days. Be sure that the potash is 
pure and crude, not the concentrated. If the soap 
grease be rendered and strained each day as it accumu- 
lates it will be ready when the time for making the soap 
comes. By this method there is no boiling of the soap 
and no odor in the house. 

Splinters. — i. When a splinter has been driven deep 
into the flesh it can be extracted by steam. Nearly fill a 
wide-mouthed bottle with hot water, place the injured 
part over the mouth of the bottle and press tightly. The 
suction will draw the flesh down and in a minute or two 
the steam will extricate the splinter and inflammation to- 
gether. 

2. Wood splinters, if not too brittle, may generally be 
extracted by tweezers or forceps, by seizing the end and 
pulling carefully in the direction opposite to that in which 
they entered. 

To get hold of a splinter under the nail, cut out a 
V-shaped portion of the nail above it, and then the end 
may be seized. 

Splinters of glass, unless readily extracted, should be 
left to the skill of the surgeon. When a splinter in the 
eye cannot be extracted, bathe in cold water, and band- 



246 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

age loosely, so as to keep the eye as quiet as possible un- 
til the surgeon arrives. 

Sponge. — I. To clean a sponge put one quart of 
cold water in a basin and add to it four tablespoonfuls of 
sulphuric acid. Let the sponge soak in this for two or 
three hours ; beat it occasionally with a stick. Finally 
rinse the sponge thoroughly in clean water. The hands 
should not be put into the acid solution, neither should 
the acid touch any fabric or marble. 

2. A sponge can also be cleansed by soaking in a hot 
solution of powdered boric. 

Sprain. — i. A sprain occurs when a joint is twisted 
but not dislocated. The ligaments which hold the bones 
together are stretched and sometimes torn. Relief is ob- 
tained by immersing the part in very hot water for a time 
and then keeping it surrounded with hot water bags. The 
joint should be firmly but not too tightly bandaged from 
the fingers or toes upward. After a time gentle rubbing 
is useful. 

If hot water is not to be had cold may be used, and 
gives some relief. Bandages dipped in either hot or cold 
water are beneficial, or better still, witch-hazel should be 
used to moisten the bandage. The bandage must be 
quite tight to do any good ; it must be kept wet; and the 
part must be kept still. 

2. An excellent liniment for sprains and strains is 
made of: Chloroform, one fluid ounce; camphor gum. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 247 

three-fourths ounce. Shake together till dissolved, then 
add olive oil, one ounce ; tincture of cantharides, one 
drachm. Keep tightly corked. 

3. The white of an egg, beaten thoroughly together 
with one-half teaspoonful of powdered alum, then set 
upon the stove to heat, being stirred until it curdles, is a 
good remedy for sprains. It should be laid over the 
sprain on a piece of cloth, and chainged or re wet as often 
as it becomes dry. When the mixture heats and 
curdles the whey should be strained off and used for 
wetting. 

Staining.^ — The wood to be stained should be clean, 
smooth and dry. Oak staiii is made by mixing together 
a pint of boiled linseed oil, a gill and a half of turpen- 
tine, three tablespoonfuls of raw umber, three tablespoon- 
fuls of whiting. 

Mahogany stain is made with one pint of boiled oil, a 
gill and a half of turpentine, three tablespoonfuls of 
burnt sienna, three tablespoonfuls of whiting, half a 
tablespoonful of yellow ochre, half a tablespoonful of Bis- 
marck brown, and half a tablespoonful of aniline black. 

A combination of burnt umber, burnt sienna, chrome 
yellow and Venetian red gives a pleasing warm dark 
color. See Wood. Stains to imitate the various woods 
can be purchased at any paint shop. 

Stains. — Stains such as those of fruit, tea, coffee, ink, 



248 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

wine and vegetables, should be removed before the linen 
or the clothing is washed. Soap is an alkali and sets 
many stains. The sooner a stain is treated the more 
readily it will yield to the treatment. Boiling also fixes 
a stain, and if linen is allowed to go into the boiler with 
the stains still on a permanent dye may result. Stains 
may be removed in various ways, diiferent stains yielding 
to different treatment.' 

Staifis made with sugar ^ syrups and meat juice may be 
removed with water; those made with fruit and vege- 
tables, if treated at once, may be removed with boiling 
water. Stretch the fabric containing the stain over a 
bowl or basin and pour boiling water on the stain. In 
cold weather fruit spots can frequently be removed by 
hanging the stained garment out-of-doors over night. If 
the stain has become fixed soak it in a weak solution of 
oxalic acid, or hold the spot over the fumes of burning 
sulphur, or else use javelle water. Then rinse well in 
several waters. Chemicals should be used only on white 
goods. 

Cold water should always be tried first, as it is harmless 
to the fabric and often removes a stain better than any- 
thing else. 

Fruit and vegetable stains can usually be removed from 
the hands by the use of an acid. Lemon juice, vinegar, 
sour milk, alcohol, etc., are all good. 

Pitchy wheel grease, tar stains should be softened with 
lard, then soaked in turpentine. Scrape off carefully 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 249 

with a knife all the loose dirt ; sponge clean with turpen- 
tine and rub gently till dry. 

Treat sewing-machine oil stains by rubbing them with 
lard. Let stand for a few hours, then wash with water 
and soap. 

For soot stains use dry corn-meal, rubbing it on the 
spots before the garment is washed. 

Teaj coffee or cocoa stains may be removed with boil- 
ing water ; if obstinate, with a weak solution of oxalic 
acid. 

Iron mould should be sprinkled with salts of lemon and 
the:! iiave boiling water poured through the spots. 

To remove stains on earthenware vessels which have 
been burned brown in cooking fruit or milk, or when en- 
amel pans or pie dishes are stained, or if silver spoons are 
stained with eggs, or cups with tea, dampen them and 
rub them with a little common salt, and the results will 
be satisfactory. Benzine (purified) two ounces and oil of 
lemon, one-fourth ounce, mixed together, make a good 
wash for paint, pitch and grease stains. Apply with a 
cloth or sponge and rub until the stain is removed. 

' Tar spots may be removed by putting butter upon 
them for a few hours, then cleanse with soap and water 
to remove the grease. 

Oil stains on floors can be removed by using oxalic 
acid and water; then wash well with soda and soap. 

To remove aniline stains from the hajtds wash with 
alcohol, or first with bleaching powder, then with alcohol. 



250 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

Nitrate of silver stains may be removed from the 
fingers by painting them with tincture of iodine j let re- 
main until the black becomes white. Then apply am- 
monia which bleaches out the iodine spots. 

A good remover of stains is javelle water, previously 
described. 

Oxalic acid should be made into a strong solution and 
kept on hand and diluted when it is required for use. 
Put four ounces of oxalic crystals in a pint bottle and fill 
half full with cold water. This makes a supersaturated 
solution, as all the crystals will not dissolve in that amount 
of water. For removing stains mix one-fourth of the so- 
lution and three-fourths of hot water. Soak the article in 
this until the stains disappear ; then rinse the articles very 
thoroughly. 

Starch. — i. The best starch for laundry purposes is 
rice starch. It does not properly dissolve in cold water, 
but only when boiling water is added ; the cells burst, 
and a thick paste is formed. To make boiled starch : 
One tablespoonful of white starch ; two tablespoon fuls of 
cold water ; one-fourth inch of wax or tallow candle ; 
one-fourth teaspoonful of borax. Mix the starch to a 
smooth paste with the cold water ; shred in the wax or 
tallow candle, dissolve the borax in a small quantity of 
boiling water and add it to the starch. Pour on sufficient 
boiling water to cook the starch, stirring all the time 
until it is quite clear and transparent; add cold 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 251 

water gradually and use according to the desired stiff- 
ness. 

Borax added to starch gives a gloss to linen ; and wax 
or tallow makes the iron slip easily. Thick, stiff starch 
does not stiffen garments as well as thin starch, which 
penetrates quickly. 

2. The following is a good method to follow : To 
make the clothes as stiff as may be desired mix two table- 
spoonfuls of laundry starch with a gill of cold water. 
Pour on this one pint of boiling water, stirring all the 
while ; add to this half a teaspoonful of salt, half a tea- 
spoonful of white sugar and a piece of spermaceti about the 
size of a peanut. Boil for ten minutes, stirring frequently. 
Keep the starch covered while boiling ; strain through a 
piece of cheese-cloth, and keep it covered while it is cool- 
ing. Have the articles to be starched nearly dry and dip 
them in the starch while it is yet quite warm. Clap be- 
tween the hands that the starch may be worked into all 
the threads. Dry and then dampen thoroughly with 
cold water; roll up in a clean cloth for a few hours. 
When ironing starched clothes keep the unironed part 
damp by covering with a wet cloth. Should this process 
fail to make the articles as stiff as desired, mix two 
quarts of cold water with two tablespoonfuls of dry starch, 
and when the clothes are dry dip them into this, instead 
of wetting them in cold water. 

3. To give starched goods a fine gloss put into the 
cooking starch a little stearine or spermaceti and about a 



252 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

teaspoonful of borax to each quart of starch. Add a little 
bluing if you like. If stearine or spermaceti is not at 
hand a little lard or butter will do. 

4. Starch for table linen is made with one table- 
spoonful of dry starch to two quarts of water. Wet the 
starch with a few tablespoonfuls of cold water ; pour the 
boiling water on this, stirring constantly. Boil for ten 
minutes and add a little wax or lard. Fine, heavy 
damask table-linen does not require starch. 

5. Cold starch is made of one tablespoonful of starch, 
four drops of turpentine, one-half teaspoonful of borax, 
one-half pint of cold water. Mix the starch to a smooth 
paste with a little of the cold water, and drop in the tur- 
pentine. Add the borax, previously dissolved in a little 
boiling water, then the remainder of the cold water. Stir 
well each time before using. Cold starch is better if 
made a short time before it is to be used. 

Stings. — I. An old-fashioned and effective remedy 
for the sting of a bee or other insect is the juice of a raw 
onion. This should be applied immediately to the part 
stung. 

2. The sting, if it remains in the wound, should be 
extracted, and the puncture dressed with a little weak 
ammonia, and afterward a little bromide of ammonia may 
be added, which serves as a sedative. 

3. Other simple remedies for bee and insect stings 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 253 

are a piece of raw beef, a solution of ammonia, vinegar 
and salt, or borax moistened with lemon juice. 

4. Tincture of myrrh is a good remedy for stings. A 
little should be applied to the puncture at once, when 

the pain and swelling cease almost instantly. 

-• 

Stone. — To remove grease from stones, stone steps or 
passages pour a boiling solution of soda and water on the 
spot, lay on it a little fuller's earth made into a thin paste 
with boiling water, let it remain all night, and if the 
grease be not removed repeat the process. Grease may 
sometimes be taken out by rubbing the spot with a hard 
stone, using sand and very hot water with soap and soda. 

Stopper. — I . The gummy element in many substances 
often hardens around glass stoppers in bottles. A simple 
and quick way to loosen such stoppers is to put a pad of 
soft paper in a small saucepan or quart-measure ; place 
the bottle in this, neck down, then pour in enough cold 
water to come well above the neck. The vessel should 
then be placed on the stove and watched until the water 
becomes hot. The bottle may then be taken out and the 
stopper removed without difficulty. 

2. Another way to get a glass stopper out of a bottle 
is to press the thumb of the right hand very hard against 
the lower part of the stopper, and then give the stopper a 
twist the other way, with the thumb and forefinger of the 
left hand, keeping the body stiff and steady. 

3. A cloth, wet with hot water and applied to the 



254 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

neck of the bottle will cause the glass to expand, and the 
stopper may be removed. 

Stove. — I. To black a stove wash off all grease spots 
with soap-suds, and if there are any rough, rusty places 
or spots where something has burned on the stove, rub 
with a piece of sandpaper. Mix the blacking to the con- 
sistency of cream with cold coffee or vinegar. Apply 
this to the stove when cold ; when it is nearly dry rub 
with a brush until it shines. Stove-polish can be mois- 
tened with benzine with good results. A little turpentine 
in the blacking will give the stove a brilliant polish and 
take off the rust. 

2. A good pai?it to apply to those parts that turn red- 
and from which the blacking burns quickly is made of a 
gill of turpentine and a pint of asphaltum. Stir these 
well together. Put on with a brush as one would paint 
and the stove looks like new. 

3. The mica windoivs of coal stoves can be cleaned 
with a soft cloth dipped in vinegar and water. This 
should be done when the stove is being put up. 

4. To remove rust from stovepipe and stoves rub a 
little raw linseed oil upon it ; then dry it with a moderate 
fire, after which polish may be used. 

5. To keep a stove from (getting rusty during the 
summer months smear it over with kerosene oil before 
putting it away and wrap it up with old clothing or car- 
pet and keep it in a perfectly dry place. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 255 

6. When a crack is discovered in a stove, through 
which the fire or smoke penetrates, the aperture may be 
closed with a composition consisting of wood ashes and 
common salt, made up into a paste with a little water, 
and plastered over the crack. 

7. A piece of alum about the size of a large hickory- 
nut dissolved in two tablespoonfuls of vinegar and mixed 
with cold coffee or water and made into a paste with 
stove blacking helps in getting a bright polish. 

8. A varnish for stovepipes is made of : Asphaltum, 
one pound ; boiled linseed oil, one-half pint j turpentine, 
one quart. Fuse the asphaltum in an iron pot, boil the 
linseed oil and add while hot. Stir well and remove from 
the fire. When partially cooled add the turpentine. 

Sty. — I. A poultice of black tea is said to be a good 
remedy for a sty. Put a teaspoonful of black tea in a 
small bag ; pour on it enough boiling water to moisten 
it ; then put it on the eye pretty warm. Keep it on all 
night ; if necessary apply a second application. 

2. A lotion for sties : Camphor water, one- 
half ounce ; muriate of morphia, one grain. 

3. Tincture of iodine is said to be an effective 
remedy. The lids should be held apart by the thumb 
and index finger of the left hand while the iodine is 
painted over the inflamed part with a fine camel hair 
pencil. The lids should not be allowed to come into 



256 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

contact until the part touched is dry. A few such 
applications in twenty-four hours is sufficient. 

Suffocation from Inhaling Gas. — One who has 

been suffocated by gas should be carried to the open air 
as quickly as possible, laid down, and kept warm. 
Twenty drops of ammonia in a tumbler of water should 
be taken at frequent intervals ; also two to four drops 
tincture of nux vomica every hour or two for five or six 
hours. 

Sunburn. — i. A layer of suitable cream is a good 
protection. This should be spread thickly over the face 
and allowed to sink into the skin. Then enough should 
be taken off to keep the face from appearing too greasy. 
Powder should then be put on thickly. A cream that is 
recommended for this purpose is made of the following 
ingredients : Tragacanth powder, eighty grains ; gly- 
cerine, four drachms ; menthol, fifty grains ; alcohol, 
five drachms ; water, enough to make soft, sixteen 
ounces ; solution of carmine, quantity sufficient to color 
light pink. On coming into the house the face should be 
washed of the cream and powder with warm water and a 
pinch of bicarbonate of soda. Then moisten the face 
with the following lotion which should be allowed to dry 
on the skin : Tincture of arnica, four ounces ; 
glycerine, eight ounces ; rose-water, four ounces. 

2. If in spite of precautions, the face has become red, 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 257 

sensitive to the touch, swollen and even beginning to 
peel, the first thing to do is to soothe it with compresses 
of sterilized gauze dipped in a solution of equal parts of 
witch-hazel and hydrate of chloral. Keep these on, 
constantly moistening them as often as possible. They 
will lessen the pain of burning. 

3. A camphor cream to apply to the sunburned skin ; 
Spermaceti, two ounces ; white wax, four ounces ; sweet 
almond oil, eight ounces ; camphor, two ounces ; oil of 
bitter almond, one drachm ; expressed oil of mace, -sixty 
grains. 

4. Spirits of arnica may be used where there are no 
abrasions of the skin with good results. 

5. Strong soap and hard water should never be used 
on the skin. Redness, roughness and irritation may be 
prevented by using borax and lukewarm water. 

6. A safe lotion for sunburn is : Borax, 320 grains; 
zinc oxide, 320 grains; glycerine, two and a half 
ounces ; bay rum, two and a half ounces ; distilled 
water, ten ounces. Mix and apply freely five or six times 
a day. See also Creams. 

Sunstroke. — i. While waiting for the physician, give 
the person cool drinks of water or cold black tea, or cold 
coifee, if able to swallow. If the skin is hot and dry, 
sponge, or pour cold water over the body and limbs, and 
apply to the head pounded ice wrapped in a towel or 
other cloth. If there is no ice at hand, keep a cold cloth 



258 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

on the head, and pour cold water on it as well as on the 
body. If the person is pale, very faint and pulse feeble, 
let him inhale ammonia for a few seconds or give him a 
teaspoonful of aromatic spirits of ammonia in two table- 
spoonfuls of sweetened water. The patient should be 
kept in a shady and cool place ; his clothing should be 
loosened, and he may be given a drink of brandy. 

2. It is said that protection against sunstroke is 
afforded by wearing orange-yellow clothing, especially a 
shirt of this color and lining the coat and hat with flannel 
of the same color. 

A straw hat should be worn, and a wet cloth or a large 
green leaf should be put inside of it on the head. 
Perspiration should not be checked but one should 
drink enough water to keep it up, as perspiration keeps 
the body from becoming overheated. One should have 
some sort of shade when exposed for any length of time 
to the sun's rays. 

Swelling. — i. A swelling can be reduced by treat- 
ing it as follows : Apply over the affected part applica- 
tions consisting of hot and cold baths applied in alterna- 
tion, changing every fifteen seconds, for about ten 
minutes. Apply this two or three times a day, and a heat- 
ing compress during the intervals. The heating compress 
consists of a towel wrung out of cold water, wrapped 
about the part, and covered with rubber cloth, and 
several thicknesses of flannel to retain the heat. The 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 259 

application should become well warmed up in a few 
minutes. . 

2. Another good remedy for a swelling is : Cider 
vinegar, one pint; spirits of turpentine, one-half pint; 
beat well three eggs, and mix all together. Wet cloths 
with this and lay or bind them on the swelling. 

Table. — i. A dining-room table should be frequently 
rubbed with chamois or soft linen. It should also be 
rubbed hard once a week with a soft flannel moistened 
with paraffine oil and turpentine, and then with a piece 
of soft linen. It should then rest an hour and then be 
rubbed again with a piece of chamois or soft linen. This 
treatment will keep any table that is in daily use in good 
condition. 

2. The following is said to be a good way to polish a 
dining or other table: Take a quarter of a pound of 
beeswax and have ready a piece of carpet a quarter of a 
yard square, lined with a piece of cloth and padded. 
Hold the wax before a fire and as it melts coat the cloth 
with it and while yet warm rub the table briskly for a 
quarter of an hour. 

3. White spots on a table maybe removed by rubbing 
with kerosene. If the spots are very deep rub gently and 
rapidly with linseed oil and powdered rottenstone. Do 
not use great pressure and do not let the powder get dry. 
See Furniture. 



26o RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

Tan. — T. A bleaching lotion to remove tan: Haifa 
pint of milk, half an ounce of white brandy, one-quarter 
of an ounce of lemon juice. Bring the milk to a boil, 
and then put in the lemon juice and brandy. Let it come 
to a boil again, and then remove and strain. As soon as 
it cools, bottle, and mop the tanned surface with it twice 
a day, and at night, allowing it to dry on. 

2. Another remedy is to moisten the face at night 
with cucumber juice. Cut a cucumber lengthwise and 
rub it on the face, allowing the juice to remain until it 
dries off. A mild solution of baking soda is also good. 
See under Sunburn, Face, Creams and Skin. 

Tea-kettle. — i. To remove the coating from the in- 
terior of a tea-kettle fill it with water, add a large piece 
of sal soda, and let the water boil for an hour. Wash the 
soda solution out and the kettle should be clean. 

2. Wash out the tea-kettle night and morning. Keep 
on hand a few clean oyster shells ; put one into the clean 
kettle, and much of the limestone will fasten itself to the 
shell. When it becomes heavy throw it away and put in 
a new one. 

Tea Stains. — i. If, while the stains are fresh, boil- 
ing water is poured through the cloth, it will remove the 
discoloration. For stains that are not easily removed use 
either a strong solution of tartaric acid, chloride of lime 
or javelle water. Soak the stained article in the bleach- 



RECEIPTS AND RExMEDlES 261 

ing mixture until the stain has disappeared, then rinse in 
several clear waters. 

2. To remove tea stains from china scrub them with 
a soft brush dipped in salt water and vinegar. This will 
remove ordinary marks. Dark, obstinate stains that this 
treatment will not remove will come off if the stained cup 
is immersed for two days in sour milk. 

Teeth. — i. The teeth should be brushed after each 
meal and before one goes to bed. When the teeth are 
neglected they decay and the gums become weak and un- 
healthy. Twice a year tartar should be removed, and 
cavities filled by a dentist. Powders that contain coarse, 
gritty substances are very harmful. The teeth should be 
brushed up and down as well as crossways. The reason 
for this is obvious. Food particles lodge between the 
teeth, and by brushing horizontally only or crosswise, as 
is commonly done, the hairs of the brush jump from one 
tooth to another, but do not reach the spaces between. 

The mouth of a very young child should be swabbed 
daily with a bit of clean linen which has been dipped in 
a solution of boric. The tooth-brush should be a stiff 
rather than a soft one. If one's teeth are of a dark or 
yellow hue it is best not to attempt to make them white. 
It cannot be done save at the expense of the teeth them- 
selves. Tooth-brushes should be kept clean, and steril- 
ized once a week with hot boric solution. 

2. . An excellent tooth-powder may be made of the fol- 



262 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

lowing ingredients : One tablespoonful of pure powdered 
borax, one ounce of precipitated chalk, half an ounce of 
powdered orris-root, and one drachm of rose pink. Mix 
well together, by aid of pestle and mortar. This powder 
preserves the teeth and sweetens the breath. 

3. The following is a most excelle?tt antiseptic pow- 
der for the teeth: Precipitated chalk, six ounces; pow- 
dered orris-root, one ounce ; white Castile soap in pow- 
der, one-half ounce ; pulverized sugar, one-half ounce ; 
boric, one-half ounce; powdered wintergreen, one-half 
drachm. Grind to fine powder, and sift twice. Oil of 
wintergreen, one-half drachm may be used. 

4. A simple tooth-powder : Powdered chalk, one 
ounce ; oil of peppermint, one drop. 

5. A good powder for general use and to harden the 
gums is made of one ounce of cinnamon, one ounce of 
bicarbonate of soda and two drops of oil of cinnamon. 

6. Liquid dentifrice : Dissolve one ounce of pow- 
dered Castile soap in one pint of water, then add three 
drachms of powdered borax, five drops of oil of nutmeg 
and two ounces of honey water. 

7 . When the teeth have accumulated a coating of tartar 
that tooth-powder does not remove, dip an orange wood 
stick into fine wood ashes and rub the teeth. The ashes 
should be moist; and both the inner and outer sur- 
faces should be rubbed. This treatment will remove the 
tartar. It should not be repeated too frequently, how- 
ever, as it is apt to be hard on the gums. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 263 

8. Powdered cigar ashes or charcoal apphed with the 
end of a toothpick to which has been tied a bit of cotton 
will remove tartar, unless very much hardened. 

9. A pleasant deodorizer and mouth wash is a half 
glass of warm water with lemon juice and a few drops of 
glycerine. This is not only cleansing, but healing where 
any small spots or cankers are produced by stomach 
troubles, as is often the case. „ 

Thawing.— To thaw out a frozen water pipe, screw 
off the faucet or tap, and forcccoarse salt into the pipe ; 
then pour in boiling water to dissolve the salt, and it will 
gradually eat its way through the ice in the pipe. 

Throat. — There are many simple remedies for sore 
throat. The following ones are among the most effica- 
cious : 

1. Gargle with a pint of water to which have been 
added a tablespoonful of salt and a tablespoonful of pow- 
dered borax. 

2. An excellent gargle for sore throat is made by mix- 
ing a teaspoonful of salt in a half cup of vinegar and 
water, and adding a liberal sprinkling of black pepper. 

3. Apply externally a mixture of one part turpentine 
and two parts of camphorated oil, covering with cotton 
batting and a piece of cloth. 

4. A cold compress is a simple hut effectual remedy 
for ordinary sore throat. Dip a folded piece of cotton 

into cold water, wring it just enough not to drip, wind it 



264 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

round the throat, and cover it with several folds of cot- 
ton or flannel. The warmth of the body soon converts it 
into a kind of poultice, and the moisture relieves the in- 
flamed condition. Remove in the morning and bathe the 
neck with cold water. 

5. A gargle made by dissolving a heaping teaspoonful 
of common baking soda in a glass of water and gargling 
frequently is valuable for sore throat. 

6. Strong hot tea is said to relieve soreness of the 
throat when used as a gargle. 

Thrush. — The following treatment is suggested for this 
disease of the mouth of bottle-fed or delicate children : 
Cover the finger with a clean moist cloth, and wipe away 
the patches in the mouth and on the tongue. Then 
spray the mouth with a lotion made of one-half ounce 
of boric and one pint of water. Or a small quantity of 
the following lotion may be applied with a camel's hair 
brush : Pure powdered borax, twenty grains ; tincture 
of myrrh, one-half fluid drachm ; glycerine, one fluid 
drachm ; water, enough to make one fluid ounce. 

Tins. — Tinware is nicely cleaned and polished by 
being rubbed with a paste made of whiting and water. 
It should then be rubbed with a piece of chamois 
skin. For very dirty or greasy tins grated bath brick 
and water, or sifted wood ashes and water, must be 
used. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 265 

Toe-nail (Ingrowing). — i. It is said that powdered 
alum used freely will cure any case of ingrowing nail 
in a few days. Apply a formation of soap and water 
for twenty-four hours beforehand, and then pour the 
alum into the space between the nail and its bed, tamp- 
ing with cotton to keep the alum in place. Repeat the 
application daily. The suppuration readily dries. 

2. The pain from an ingrowing toe-nail can be 
relieved by treating with a mixture composed of one 
ounce chloride of zinc and one drachm each of muriatic 
and nitric acids. Mix them thoroughly, and apply one 
drop daily to the sore toe. 

3. Any sharp or rough edges or points that project 
into the flesh should be removed with a sharp knife or 
scissors. If this proves too painful or if the surrounding 
flesh is much swollen, a poultice of ground slippery elm 
or flaxseed should be applied and left on all night. In 
the morning this should be removed, and the foot should 
be bathed in hot water for ten or fifteen minutes and then 
wiped dry. The flesh will be softened and the inflamma- 
tion relieved so that the nail can be examined and the 
point or edge cut off. After this has been done the edges 
of the nail may be raised and a small flat piece of lint, a 
little zinc ointment or other healing salve applied, may be 
placed between the nail and the sore flesh beneath. This 
should be repeated night and morning until the toe is 
healed. The patient should also wear a shoe from which 
the leather over the toe has been removed. A wad of 



266 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

cotton batting should be placed between the affected toe 
and one next to it to relieve the pressure. Should there 
be any proud flesh add a half teaspoon ful of carbolic acid 
to each quart of hot water used in bathing the foot ; and 
after dressing the toe sprinkle a little burnt alum on 
the proud flesh. 

Tonics. — I. A medical authority prescribes the 
following tonic for general weakness, nervousness and 
all run-down condition of the system : Fluid extract of 
cocoa, five and a half drachms ; fluid extract of damiana, 
one ounce ; fluid extract of kola, five and a half drachms ; 
fluid extract of saw palmetto, one ounce ; extract of beef, 
four drachms ; simple elixir, fourteen ounces. Dissolve 
by shaking and filter through purified talcum. The dose 
is a teaspoonful three or four times a day in a little water 
or wine. 

2. A splendid tonic for a run down condition is 
home-made hypophosphites, which costs but a few cents. 

Twenty grains of hypophosphites of lime ; twenty 
grains of hypophosphites of soda ; twenty grains of iron ; 
four grains of quinine ; one-half pound of loaf sugar ; one 
pint of water boiled, then cooled. Dissolve the drugs 
in a little of the warm water, put all into a pint bottle, 
add enough water to make a pint, shake until dissolved. 
Keep in a cool, dark place. Dose : A dessertspoonful 
half an hour before meals. 

3. A very eff"ectual tonic for those moments when 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 267 

one is excited and irritable and when the nerves tremble 
and one's feelings are utterly indefinable is made of 
lavender. Two or three teaspoonfuls of the tincture of 
lavender in a cupful of hot water with a slice or two of 
lemon makes a restorative drink that acts like magic, 
and puts a woman in possession of her best self. 

Toothache.— I. If the tooth has a cavity clean it 
out and apply a pledget of cotton saturated with the 
following : Chloroform, ten drops ; tincture of opium, 
five drops ; tincture of benzoin, twenty drops. 

2. Oil of cloves is a good remedy for toothache. 
Moisten a bit of cotton with it and place in the cavity of 
the tooth. 

3. Dissolve a piece of opium the size of a small pea 
in a half teaspoonful of spirits of turpentine. Put upon 
cotton and insert into the tooth. The cotton should be 
soaked and renewed until there is relief. 

4. For rotten or decayed teeth : Creosote, one 
drachm ; ninety per cent, alcohol, one drachm ; oil of 
cloves, one-half fluid drachm. Saturate cotton with this 
and put in the tooth. 

5. For a tooth that has no cavity y apply : Tincture of 
iodine, four drachms ; tincture of aconite, one drachm. 
Paint the gums around the tooth two or three times a 
day. 

6. Saturate a pledget of cotton in boiling vinegar 
and rub the gum around the aching tooth with it. Fill 



268 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

the cavity with some of the saturated cotton. Repeat 
the application in five minutes if not relieved. 

7. A good remedy for 'toothache is : Powdered 
alum, one-fourth ounce ; spirits of nitrous ether, seven 
drachms. Mix and apply to the cavity on cotton, also 
paint around the tooth. 

Ulcers. — I. An excellent antiseptic solution to use 
for washing ulcers and other sores is made by adding 
one teaspoonful of carbolic acid to a pint of water, stir- 
ring well. 

2. Ulcers may also be washed with a saturated 
solution of boric acid, which is an excellent healing 
antiseptic for the purpose. 

3. Bichloride of mercury (corrosive sublimate), seven 
and a half grains to the quart of water can be used for 
the same purpose. This is a deadly poison and must 
not be taken internally. 

Umbrella. — An umbrella that is stained by mud 
may be cleaned with a vigorous application of ammonia 
and water applied with a piece of old black silk. 

Underwear. — See Woolens. 

Varnish. — i. Varnish stains on clothing may be 
removed with alcohol or turpentine. If the stain is on 
a fine fabric use alcohol in the following manner : Wet 
the varnish with alcohol and let it rest a few minutes, 
then wet again and sponge off with a clean cloth. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 269 

Continue this until all the varnish is removed. If the 
color has been affected by the alcohol, sponge the place 
with chloroform. If the color is blue and the fabric is 
cotton or wool, dilute acetic acid or vinegar may be used 
instead of the chloroform. 

2. If the stain is on a coarse fabric dissolve by 
saturating with turpentine. If this leaves a dark fing 
sponge it with chloroform. Be very cautious not to use 
either the turpentine or chloroform where there is either 
fire or artificial light. 

3. Turpentine or lye diluted with hot water will 
either of them -remove varnish from a floor. If the floor 
is oiled the turpentine or lye may also remove the oil, 
necessitating a re-oihng afterward. 

Spots and stains on varnished surfaces that are not of 
long standing may be removed with kerosene. Pour a 
little of the oil on the spot and rub with a piece of flan- 
nel. If the spot is a deep one and one of long stand- 
ing it should be rubbed with linseed oil and powdered 
rottenstone. Polish with paraffine oil and turpentine. 
See under Furniture. 

When a varnished surface becomes faded and cracked, 
linseed oil should be applied. Use boiled linseed oil 
once a week, rubbing it in well with a woolen cloth. 
After a few weeks the surface will become smooth and 
soft and of good color. 

Vaseline Stains may be removed with ether. Sat- 



270 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

urate the spot with ether and place a cup over it to pre- 
vent evaporation until the stain is removed. Ether 
must be used with very great care not to breathe the 
fumes. 

Veils. — Crape veils may be renovated in the following 
manner : Cover a board with a piece of colored flan- 
nel ; pin the veil smoothly on this, being careful to keep 
the edges straight. Use a large flatiron, very hot. Take 
a piece of cloth large enough to cover the veil and wet 
it in cold water ; then wring it nearly dry and lay it over 
the crape. Pass the iron lightly over the wet cloth, 
keeping the weight of the iron in the hand. Continue 
this until the whole veil is pressed. When the work is 
finished hang the veil on the clothes-horse until it is per- 
fectly dry. See Crape, 

Velvet and Plush. — Silk and cotton velvets, vel- 
veteens and plush when stained or soiled may be cleaned 
with naphtha or benzine, turpentine and alcohol. The 
dust should first be removed by brushing with a soft 
brush. Then sponge the fabric with one of the ma- 
terials named, then rub briskly with a clean dry cloth. 
When the fabric is very much soiled it may be neces- 
sary to dip it in a bath of benzine, then drying thor- 
oughly. When all the material is cleaned it should be 
steamed to raise the pile. To do this have two irons 
made very hot. Put one on its side and cover it with 
several thicknesses of old clcth made very wet. Pass 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 271 

the back of the velvet over this, holding it close to the 
cloth until the velvet looks thick and fluffy. Do not use 
a brush unless the pile is badly crushed. If that is the 
case, brush against the nap, using a soft velvet brush. 
The steaming may be done over a pan of boiling water, 
nap up, A second person may brush the surface against 
the nap while the first holds the velvet taut over the 
boiling water. 

To ^stiffen the back of the velvet prepare a strong 
solution of gum arable in warm water. Dissolve one- 
fourth of an ounce of the gum arable in a gill of warm 
water. Brush the back all over with this solution. This 
stiffens the fabric and prevents the pile getting loose. 
To do this work properly put the velvet face down on a 
clean board and tack it so that it shall lie perfectly 
straight. When the material is dry remove it from the 
board and brush the pile. 

Grease spots on velvet may be removed with highly 
rectified benzine or with chloroform. Rub the spot 
lightly and rapidly with a soft rag dipped in chloroform ; 
repeat the operation if necessary. Rub rapidly and 
lightly, then finish with a clean, dry cloth. 

Vermin. — See Insects, Lice, Rats, etc. 

Vinaigrette. — Receipt for a vinaigrette : Oil of lav- 
ender, one-fourth fluid ounce; caustic spirits of am- 
monia, three-eighths pint. Saturate a bit of sponge 
with this preparation, and place it in the vinaigrette; or 



2/2 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

pour it on to crystals of potassium sulphate with whicli 
the vinaigrette has first been filled. This is excellent in 
cases of faintness or headache. 

Violin. — I. To clean the outside of a violin ordinary 
paraffine oil is said to be quite satisfactory. Saturate a 
soft rag with the oil and proceed to wash the violin. 
The dirt is dissolved without injury to the varnish. 

2. Soap and water may be used if used catefully. 
The interior may be cleaned with dry rice. It is also 
suggested to steep a handful of rice in a solution of 
sugar and water five minutes, then strain it and dry 
the rice until it is just sticky. Put in at sound-holes and 
shake thoroughly. The rice picks up the dirt, and may 
be readily shaken out. ^ 

Violin Bows. — Clean with a soft flannel and yel- 
low soap, first moistening the cloth with cold water. 
Rub gendy until clean, using plenty of soap; then 
rinse the flannel, wipe off, and wipe dry with a soft cloth ; 
in an hour it will be ready for the rosin. Borax and 
water is also good for the purpose. 

Vomiting. — i. To induce vomiting an emetic is 
generally required. Mustard is a very active emetic 
when stirred into a cup of warm water. A heaping 
teaspoonful should be stirred into a small cupful of 
warm water. Its harmlessness makes it safe to repeat 
in a few minutes if necessary. It is very useful when 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 273 

it is desired to relieve the stomach of its contents as in 
cases of sick headache, poisoning or indigestion, accom- 
panied by severe pain or cramps. 

2. An excellent emetic is made by steeping one-half 
ounce of lobelia and the same quantity of boneset (thor- 
oughwort) in a pint of water. The dose is one table- 
spoonful every ten minutes until vomiting has taken 
place. 

3. A quick and effective emetic to be taken in cases 
of accidental poisoning is two ounces of powdered chalk 
of magnesia mixed into a pint of milk, the whole being 
swallowed at one draught. Then run the finger down 
the throat and move it gently from side to side. After 
vomiting drink freely of warm milk and water and 
repeat the vomiting. In poisoning by laudanum, 
morphine or opium, give an emetic of mustard and 
water, followed by copious draughts of warm water and 
salt, until vomiting is induced. Do not allow the patient 
to sleep. 

4. For vomiting of pregnancy, take : Cerium oxalate, 
one drachm ; bismuth subcarbonate, one drachm ; pepsin, 
one drachm. Mix, and make into twenty-four powders 
or capsules. Take one three times a day. 

5. To relieve vomiting the patient should always lie 
down. Give large amounts of hot water, as hot as can 
be taken. If not relieved let the patient hold in the 
mouth small bits of ice or swallow them. Holding a 
piece of ice against the pit of the stomach sometimes 



274 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

■ 
brings relief. When other means fail apply a mustard 
plaster to the pit of the stomach. A tablespoonful of 
lime water or a little baking soda in water may give relief. 
Bread toasted very brown and steeped in hot water, the 
water given in small quantities, is also good. 

Walls. — I. Walls that are painted may be washed 
with ammonia water, four tablespoonfuls of ammonia to 
six quarts of water. Wash the walls with this ; then go 
over the washed space with a clean cloth and clean hot 
water ; and then wipe dry. 

2. Smoky calcimined walls may be made light and 
clean by rubbing the soiled places with stale bread. 
Then pass a cheese-cloth lightly over the w^all, working 
toward and over the light part. This will even up the 
color somewhat so that the light spot will not be notice- 
able. 

Wall Paper. — i. To paper whitewashed walls. It 
is quite difficult to make paper stick to walls that have 
been made smooth by frequent whitewashing. The 
smooth finish may be scraped off or the surface may be 
sized with a coat of paste or glue. A paste for this pur- 
pose is made in the following manner : Put one pint of 
flour .in a saucepan and beat into it one quart of cold 
water. When smooth add two quarts of boiling water, 
stirring all the time. Let this boil up once, then strain 
and cool. Brush this paste over the walls and allow it to 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 275 

dry. When ready to paper, wet the walls, spread paste 
on the paper, and hang it in the usual manner. 

A coat of glue will also prepare the walls for papering. 
Make a size of glue and water and give the walls a coat 
of a very thin solution of the same. See also under Paste. 

To Clean Wall Paper. — i. Take a soft flat sponge 
and use new, clean, dry wheat bran. Hold the 
sponge flat side up and put a handful of bran on it, then 
quickly turn against the wall, and rub the wall gently and 
carefully with it ; then repeat the operation. A large pan 
or a cloth spread out should be used to catch the bran as 
it falls. Do not use the same bran twice. 

2. When the paper is not very dirty it can be im- 
proved by brushing it over in straight lines with a soft 
broom covered with a clean soft cloth such as canton 
flannel. 

3. Stale bread also will clean wall paper. Cut a loaf 
into slices and rub the paper with downward strokes. 
Clean about a yard at a time all one way, and leave no 
marks. Grease spots can be removed from wall paper by 
the use of sulphuric ether applied with a soft sponge. 
This material is highly inflammable and must be used 
with great care. Do not wipe the spot with ether but 
dab the sponge carefully against it. 

It is a good plan to apply several thicknesses of brown 
paper to the spot, in the form of a pad, and to hold a hot 
flatiron against it to draw out the grease, which will soak 
into the paper. This may be done twice, and one must 



276 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

be careful to have enough layers of brown paper to keep 
the iron from scorching the paper. 

Rules for Measuring a Room. — Measure every side 
of the room and add the number of feet together ; multi- 
ply the sum obtained by the height of the room in feet. 
The result is the total number of square feet of wall sur- 
face. To allow for doors and windows multiply the 
height of each by the width ; add all together and deduct 
from the amount. The result is the net total amount of 
wall surface to be papered. Divide this total by sixty, 
the result is the number of rolls required. 

To measure a ceiling multiply the length of the room in 
feet by the width in feet, then divide by sixty. The re- 
sult is the number of rolls required. The number of 
yards of border required is the number of feet around the 
room, divided by three. 

To Remove Paper from Walls. — Use a pail of warm 
water and a whitewash brush. Dip the brush in 
the warm water and wet the paper with it, beginning at 
the top and working down to the bottom. Wet a space 
two or three yards wide, and then begin to pull off the 
paper. A broad knife is a great help. Always have a 
broad strip of wall soaking while you are tearing off the 
paper from the preceding section. 

Warts. — I. An effectual cure for warts is to apply 
full strength acetic acid to them, once or twice a day, 
fairly wetting the wart all over. Be careful not to put on 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 277 

so much of this or any other acid that it will run off the 
wart and make the skin sore. 

2. Nitric acid is also good. Dip a toothpick in the 
acid and apply to the wart once daily. 

3/ A solution of two drachms of chromic acid and 
one fluid ounce of water is another cure. Dip a tooth- 
pick in the solution and touch the warts with it two or 
three times a day for a few days. 

4. Cut the warts off with scissors or knife, apply nitric 
acid to the stump, and then powder with : Calomel, 
one-half ounce ; boric acid, two drachms ; salicylic acid, 
forty grains, well mixed. 

5. Warts may be removed by applying once daily : 
Salicylic acid, one drachm ; acetic acid, one ounce. 

6. An unfailing remedy, according to the testimony 
of those who have tried it, is to pare off the hard cuticle, 
if there is one, and apply kerosene with a camel's hair 
brush or cloth fastened to a toothpick. 

Washing. — i. The whole secret of keeping white 
clothes in good color lies in using plenty of clean water 
and drying the articles in the open air where the sunshine 
and oxygen will sweeten and whiten them. The process 
of washing is briefly this : Have two tubs partly filled 
with warm water. Put a cupful of dissolved soap — pref- 
erably white — in one tub. Wring the white articles, table 
linen, etc., from the cold water in which they have been 
soaking and wash in the soapy water, and as each piece 



2/8 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

is washed put it in the second tub. Have the boiler half 
filled with cold water and stir into it one cupful of dis- 
solved soap. Rinse the clothes from the second tub and 
put them in the boiler. Heat to the boiling point and 
then let boil for ten minutes. Lift from the boiler and put 
them in a tubful of cold water. Wash from this into a 
second rinsing water, and from that into the bluing 
water. From the bluing water the articles should be 
wrung out and hung on the lines. If they are to be 
starched, do the starching as soon as they are wrung out 
of the bluing. 

2. Borax is an excellent article to use in the laundry. 
It softens the water; gives clean and white clothes; does 
not cause color to run in any fabric ; and by antiseptically 
entering the fabric, it prevents contagion and infection. 
It may be used in the first suds and also in the boiler. 
It is good for table linen to rinse it in water containing 
a tablespoonful of borax. 

3. The soap is a very important factor in washing 
clothes. A poor soap will give unsatisfactory results and 
will be found dear at any price. A white soap is better 
than a yellow one. Woolen or silk fabrics should not be 
washed with a yellow soap, as such a soap is apt to con- 
tain rosin. 

Sal soda is often used to soften the water and to assist 
in getting clothes clean. If too much is used it is apt to 
injure the clothing. For softening water, dissolve a 
pound of sal soda in one quart of boiling water, when 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 279 

cold bottle it. Add a gill of this solution to about twenty 
gallons of water. 

4. To launder embroidered linen, make strong suds 
of some white soap and warm water and wash the pieces 
carefully. The washboard should not be used. Rinse 
immediately in lukewarm water and then in water slightly 
blued and hang to dry. When half dry lay them out 
smoothly on a clean cloth which has been laid over a 
piece of double-faced white canton flannel, and press on 
the wrong side with a hot iron until they are quite dry. 
If they are fringed, comb the fringe out carefully with a 
moderately coarse comb. 

5. Napkins {diapers) ifuproperly washed sometimes 
cause chafing. Wash them first in cold water, leave in 
a second cold water for fifteen minutes, wring, place in a 
clean tub and pour over them two pailfuls of boiling 
water to which two tablespoonfuls of borax and some 
melted white soap have been added. Let soak for half 
an hour, and no rubbing will be necessary except on the 
soiled spots, and even then the board will not be needed. 
Rinse in several waters, dry well. Hang in the sunshine 
before using. 

6. Colored cottofis. The alkali in soap will often 
change delicate colors, therefore it. is always safer to use 
starch for washing colored dresses, shirtwaists, draperies, 
etc. If the following directions are followed the results 
will be most satisfactory : Mix to a smooth paste half a 
pint of flour and one pint of cold water. Pour on this 



28o RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

one gallon of boiling water, stirring all the time. Strain 
through cheese-cloth. Pour two-thirds of the starch into 
one tub and the other third into a second tub. Add two 
pailfuls of warm water to the starch in each tub. Wash 
the articles in the first tub just as though the water were 
soap-suds; wring, and wash again in the second tub. 
Then rinse in clear, cold water and hang in the shade to 
dry. The quantity of starch given is enough for two 
dresses. It will make them about as stiff as the new 
material. If liked stiffer, double the quantity of starch 
and divide it equally between the two waters. If soap is 
preferred to starch make a strong suds with warm water 
and dissolved soap. Wash the articles in this and then 
in a weaker suds. Rinse in plenty of clear, cold water. 
Starch, and dry in the shade. 

7. White woolen dresses such as nun's veiling, cotton 
and wooleii crapes, may be washed in cold soap-suds. 
The suds should be well mixed and the soap beaten to a 
lather, then the fabric is washed, rinsed out in cold, clear 
water, and, without wringing or even slightly pressing out 
the water, hung up to dry. The weight of the water aids 
in stretching and in preventing shrinkage. 

8. Black pique should be dried quickly after wash- 
ing in hot suds and rinsing in very blue water. When 
perfectly dry, dip in very thin blue starch, hang in the air, 
and when nearly dry iron on the wrong side. 

9. Sateens are best cleaned by placing them in a 
lather of lukewarm soap-suds containing a cup of salt ; 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 281 

rinse in water and salt ; dip in very thin, warm starch 
and wrap in a clean sheet ; in two hours iron on the 
wrong side. 

10. White flannel gowns may be washed in a cold 
lather of white soap, wrung out and wrapped in a cloth 
until nearly dry, when they should be ironed on the 
wrong side with a moderate iron over a piece of muslin. 

11. Ginghams and percales should be washed in 
moderately warm water, having salt in it to set the colors. 
Dry in the shade and use very thin, warm starch j iron 
on the wrong side. Do not soak them over night. 

12. Wash goods that are to be stored several months 
should be washed clean, and rinsed in clear waters until 
free of all soil and soap. Dry in the sunshine ; fold and 
put away unironed. 

13. A harmless washing-fluid that greatly facilitates 
the washing of clothes is made by dissolving one pound 
of concentrated lye in one gallon of water, and two ounces 
of muriate of ammonia and two ounces of salts of tartar 
in another gallon of water. From one-half cupful to a 
cupful of this fluid may be used to the necessary quantity 
of water in the boiler. 

When clothes are soaked over night a half cupful of 
the fluid should be used in the water to loosen the dirt. 
No soap is required. 

Water. — i. To soften hard water : Water that is 
made hard by carbonate of lime may be softened by the 



282 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

use of quicklime, sal soda or ammonia. When there is 
time to allow the water to settle lime is the best 
agent. To soften with lime have the water in a large 
tank or hogshead. Pour enough water on the quicklime 
to slake it. AVhen it falls to powder add enough water 
to make a thin cream and then stir into the water in the 
tank. Use one ounce of lime for every forty gallons of 
water. Do not let any undissolved lime go into the 
water. Allow the water to stand for twelve hours. The 
carbon dioxide, which held the carbonate of lime in solu- 
tion, will be absorbed by the lime and the liberated car- 
bonate of lime will fall to the bottom, leaving the water 
soft. 

2. To test the quality of water, put about a pint into 
a clear glass bottle with a stopper. Add to it a few 
grains of white lump sugar, and expose the bottle in a 
light, warm room for ten days. If the water then has a 
thick or discolored appearance it is impure and unfit for 
drinking purposes. 

Water-bugs. — To get rid of them, keep everything 
scrupulously clean, and scatter borax freely about the 
infested places. 

Weeds. — i. To destroy weeds in walks, make a 
strong brine of one quart of rock salt and four quarts of 
boiling water. Pour this brine, boiling hot, on the weeds 
and the roots will be killed. 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 283 

2. One pound of stone lime boiled to each gallon of 
water, stirring a few times while boiling, then the clear 
water poured on the weeds will also kill them. 

Whitewash. — i. A good whitewash for domestic 
use is made in the following manner : Put a piece of 
lime weighing about five pounds in a pan or pail ; pour 
on it a gallon of water, allow it to boil and slack until the 
steaming is over; take from this two quarts of the liquid 
lime, put it in a pail, and add sufficient water to make it 
rather thin. Add a small amount of pure indigo or blu- 
ing sufficient to give it the proper color ; add a teaspoon - 
ful of salt and half a teaspoonful of lampblack, stir well. 

2. An excellent whitewash for inside walls is made 
by adding a pound and a half of white vitriol, a pound of 
salt, and half a pound of dissolved glue to a peck of 
slacked lime. The effect of the salt and glue is to pre- 
vent rubbing off. 

3. Take six quarts of stone lime, slack it with boiling 
water, then cover it till it cools a little and strain it ; add 
a quarter of a pound of alum, one pound of sugar, three 
pints of rice flour boiled to a thin paste with water, and a 
pound of glue dissolved. Stir these ingredients well and 
add five gallons of hot water. A little copperas as large 
as a hickory-nut will color this a buff shade. 

4. Coloring matter for whitewash may be purchased 
at the druggist's. 

Whooping Cough. — In severe cases a doctor should 



2S4 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 



■ cniia ijnig on nif 
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STiilphnr may be used. See IhsmsrscnoN. 

:i5: f ire abo good. Diiectioiis fcrnse come 



VAndovrs. — I. An exceiieoi preparaaon ior ckan- 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 285 

ing windows, mirrors and larap chimneys is made in the 
following manner : Five pounds of gilder's whiting, one 
ounce of oxalic acid, two ounces of aqua ammonia. Mix 
with warm water, stirring until thoroughly smooth. Fill 
moulds such as gem pans, tin can covers, or fruit jar 
covers and let set and dry out. When dry enough to re- 
move wrap in tissue paper and lay away. Rub a damp 
cloth over the polish and then over the glass, rub off with 
a dry cloth and polish with very soft chamois skin. 

2. To restore brilliancy to window glass that has be- 
come opaque from the action of the sun, moisture and the 
carbonic acid in the air on the soda or potash in the glass, 
a washing with hydrochloric acid and polishing with 
whiting is recommended. First wet the glass with dilute 
hydrochloric acid, and then after a few. minutes go over 
it with powdered whiting. Pour the acid slowly into the 
cold water, using four ounces of the acid to one pint and 
a half of water. Polish with chamois or soft paper. The 
acid is destructive to metals and should not be allowed to 
touch them, nor should the bottle be left open, as the 
fumes are destructive. 

3. Windows can be cleaned in winter and the frost 
removed by using a gill of alcohol to a pint of hot water. 
Clean quickly and rub dry with a warm chamois skin. 

4. When soap and water are used in washing win- 
dows a little kerosene may be added, as it facilitates the 
removal of the smoke and dirt. Alcohol is excellent to 
use either in water or alone. It makes the glass clear 



286 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

and brilliant. Dry whiting will polish glass ; and it is 
well to first wash the window with weak tea and alcohol. 
5. It is claimed that steam will not gather on win- 
dows that when clean and clear are rubbed with glycer- 
ine. The glycerine should be applied with a soft cloth 
when the glass is dry and if possible rather warm. The 
window is then to be polished with another cloth or flan- 
nel until it shines and the glycerine is no longer visible. 
It should not, however, be entirely removed from the 
glass if it is to do any good. 

Window Shades. — Window shades that are slightly 
soiled may be taken down, spread upon a table and 
rubbed lightly, first with a dry cloth, then with one that 
has been dampened with benzine. 

Wine Stains. — These stains may be removed from 
linen by dipping the parts which are stained into boiling 
milk. The milk should be kept boiling until the stain 
disappears. 

Wood. — I. Stains for wood, — Mahogany sfai?i is 
made with -one pint of boiled linseed oil, a gill and a half 
of turpentine, three tablespoonfuls of burnt sienna, three 
tablespoonfuls of whiting, half a tablespoonful of yellow 
ochre, half a tablespoonful of bismarck brown and half a 
teaspoonful of aniline black. 

Oak stain is made by mixing together a pint of boiled 
oil, a gill and a half of turpentine, three tablespoonfuls 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 287 

of raw umber, three tablespoonfuls of whiting. A dark 
oak stain may be made by adding a little lampblack to 
the above. 

A little of the stain should be tried on a piece of board 
before using it on the wood to be stained. The shade of 
color may be deepened or lightened by increasing or 
diminishing the quantity of coloring matter. The stain 
should be rubbed into the wood with a cloth and after a 
day or two rubbed hard with a soft woolen cloth. See 
Furniture. 

2. To stain wood black : The wood is immersed 
for forty- eight hours in a hot saturated solution of alum, 
and then brushed over several times with a logwood 
liquor made as follows : Boil one part best logwood with 
ten parts of water, filter through linen and evaporate at 
a gentle heat until the volume is reduced to one-half. 
To every quart of this add from ten to fifteen drops of a 
saturated solution of indigo, completely neutral. After 
applying this dye to the wood rub the latter with a satu- 
rated and filtered solution of verdigris in hot, concen- 
trated acetic acid, and repeat the operation until a black 
of the desired intensity is obtained. Care must be taken 
to protect the hands. 

Woodwork. — i . To clean woodwork that is painted 

awhile use powdered whiting. Wring a flannel cloth out 

of hot water, and dip it lightly in whiting. Rub with 

this, and then wash off all the whiting ; next wipe with 



288 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

the cloth wrung out of hot water, and finally rub the 
surface dry with a dry flannel. If soap is preferred 
use a white soap such as white Castile or ivory, as these 
do not turn the paint yellow nor soften it as strong ydlow 
soaps do. ,jg., 

2. Woodwork that is finished in natural colors may 
be cleaned by first wiping off the dust with a §pnel 
cloth wrung out of hot water ; then go over ^ ^ ^ ■ ■ 
woolen cloth made damp with cotton-seed or sweet-oil 
and alcohol or turpentine, two parts oil and one part 
alcohol or turpentine. Rub hard, and with the grain 
of the wood, then rub with clean flannel. This will 
clean the wood and revive the color and gloss. 

3. Hard or grained woodwork may be cleaned with 
warm water and ammonia, then rubbed with dry flannel. 

4. Dark woodwork may be washed with soap and 
water. Dry with soft cloth. If the wood is dingy apply 
a mixture of linseed oil and turpentine — two parts of oil 
and one of turpentine, well mixed. 

5. To remove match marks apply lemon juice, rub- 
bing hard, and then use soap and water. 

6. Finger-marks on polished woodwork may be 
taken off by rubbing with a flannel dipped in turpentine. 

7. White stains are removed by rubbing with kerosene, 
using a great deal of oil and much pressure. ^ 

8. Dents and scratches that are not very deep may 
sometimes be removed by rubbing over with linseed oil 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 289 

and rottenstone, using a small piece of felt to do the 
rubbing. Do not rub too hard. 

9. Dark stains on woodwork can be removed by 
applying oxalic acid directly to the spot. If the first 
appl' ition does not clean the wood apply the acid again. 
The acid will remove the color of the wood as well as 
the <in, and the wood will have to be subsequently 
■i '?:4med to restore the color. 

Woolens. — i. The structure of wool fabric is so 
different from that of linen and cotton that it requires 
different treatment in the laundry. Rubbing and wring- 
ing cause the wool fibres to knot, thus giving a thickened 
and shrunken fabric ; therefore woolqn goods should be 
sopped and squeezed to remove the dirt, and the water 
should be pressed, not wrung out with the hands. 
Woolen articles should be sorted according to their 
nature and color, the white ones being taken first, then 
the "natural," and the colored last. 

Soap should not be rubbed on them. Extremes of 
heat and cold should be avoided ; warm water is best. 
Dry woolens in the open air, if possible hanging them 
up by the thickest part. 

Excellent washing directions for woolen garments 
are as follows : Have two tubs with water warm enough 
to bear the hands in comfortably. To one tub add 
enough dissolved soap to make a strong suds, and for 
every six gallons of water add one tablespoonful of borax 



290 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

dissolved in boiling water. Put in the second tub enough 
dissolved soap to make a light suds. Shake the dust 
from the garments and wash in the strong suds, sopping 
and squeezing, and lifting and dropping the articles 
until the dirt is removed. Repeat this in the second 
suds. Rinse in water that has had a very little soap 
added to it. Put the articles through the wringer and 
hang out to dry. When nearly dry press with a moder- 
ately warm iron. If there are any spots that sopping and 
squeezing will not remove spread on a smooth board and 
rub with a soft, wet brush on which a little soap has been 
spread. 

2. Another way to wash woolens is to prepare warm 
water in a tub and add to it a little household ammonia, 
and sufficient melted soap to make a lather. Sop and 
squeeze the articles between the hands but do not rub 
them ; turn them and repeat the process until they are 
perfectly clean. Rinse in lukewarm water, fold and pass 
through the wringer two or three times ; shake them, and 
hang out to dry. 

3. '* NatiiraV woolens are washed in the same way 
as white. 

4. Colored woolens may be washed the same as white 
with the exception of the ammonia, which should be 
omitted, as it affects certain colors. The water should 
also be a little cooler, and the articles should be washed 
and dried quickly to prevent the color from running. To 
the warm water for rinsing add four tablespoonfuls of 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 291 

white wine vinegar, or a tiny bit of acetic acid thoroughly 
dissolved, to brighten the colors, particularly red, blue or 
pink. Salt also is useful in the rinsing water, as it helps 
in retaining the color. It is always well to wait for a 
bright day before washing woolens. 

5. Light woolgn fabrics may be washed by soaking 
them for three hours in a cold lather of good soap and water 
with a spoonful of borax to each gallon. Dip the fabric 
up and down and rub gently in the hands ; rinse in cold 
water, and roll up in a clean cloth. When nearly dry, 
iron on the wrong side with a cloth between the iron and 
the goods. 

Worms. — I. Worms in flower pots may be effect- 
ively destroyed with lime water. Put a piece of fresh or 
unslaked lime as large as a coffee cup in a pailful of 
water. It will soon dissolve. Then pour off the clear 
water and apply to the plants. Use enough to saturate 
all the soil in the pots. Sometimes three or four applica- 
tions are necessary. 

2. Bran soaked in water in which arsenic has been 
dissolved will attract slugs and cutworms if scattered 
about their haunts. So will slices of raw potato dusted 
with arsenic. Chickens must be kept away from these 
articles as they will eat them and be poisoned. 

3. For cabbage worms the following is said to be a 
sure remedy for those who do not like to use Paris green 
or copperas. Take a ten-quart pail and fill full of tomato 



292 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

leaves, putting them in lightly; pour on about eight 
quarts of water, and let boil an hour or longer. When 
cool sprinkle this tea on the cabbages and it will kill the 
worms and not taint or discolor the cabbage. Remem- 
ber when planting tomato seed to put in a few extra ones 
to pick leaves from for the cabbage worms. 

Worms in Children. — A medical authority gives the 
following prescription for round, seat, pin, thread or maw 
worms : 

Oil of wormseed, one drachm ; fluid extract of spigelia 
and senna, one-half ounce; santonoin, eight grains; 
powdered acacia, one drachm ; aromatic syrup of rhubarb, 
one ounce. Mix, and shake well. 

Give a teaspoonful one hour before each meal ; after 
the last dose give a tablespoonful of castor oil with ten 
drops of turpentine in it. If there is itching of the rec- 
tum, mix forty grains of calomel into one-half ounce of 
vaseline, and apply at bedtime. Warm soapy water with 
ten drops of turpentine in it to each quart of water, should 
also be injected into the bowels once or twice daily for 
ten days. 

Wounds. — I. Wounds should always be most care- 
fully treated. When a wound has been made with a 
rusty nail or tool or with splinters, there is great danger 
that blood poisoning may develop. If the cause of the 
wound remains in the wound it should be immediately 
removed. The hands should be perfectly clean and 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 293 

nothing unclean should be allowed to touch the wound. 
Pins, needles, nails, splinters, thorns or bits of glass must 
be extracted. If the wound is made by a rusty nail, or 
toy pistol, open it with a sharp knife, and let it bleed 
freely, and then saturate with a solution of carbolic acid, 
one teaspoonful to the pint of water, or with peroxide of 
hydrogen, then bandage with antiseptic bandages. A 
physician should be called, as there is danger if the 
wound is not properly treated. Soiled coverings must 
never be used, nothing but clean antiseptic bandages. 

2. To stop bleeding from a wound the following 
styptic is recommended : Scrape two drachms of Castile 
soap and dissolve it in two ounces of brandy or whiskey ; 
then add one drachm of carbonate of potash ; mix well 
and keep corked. Warm it and wet pledgets of lint in it 
and apply to the wound. It immediately congeals and 
coagulates the blood. It may need repeating for deep 
wounds and when limbs are cut off. 

3. An antiseptic solution made of one teaspoonful of 
carbolic acid to the pint of water should always bfe used 
for washing wounds. 

4. A healing, antiseptic ointment for wounds ': Car- 
bolic acid, two drachms ; hydrochlorate of morphine, 
one-half drachm; tincture of arnica, five drachms; 
tincture of aconite, five drachms ; balsam of Peru, twelve 
drachms; glycerine, twenty-five drachms. Apply once 
or twice a day; cover with a piece of clean linen. 

5. An excellent treatment for a flesh wound such as 



294 RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 

a cut or puncture is to saturate it with turpentine. The 
soreness will soon disappear. 

6. To dress a slight wound: Wash the part with 
cold water, and press the finger over the bleeding point. 
This closes the cut vessels and helps to stop the flow of 
blood. Dip a piece of old linen in water that has been 
boiled and cooled ; lay it over the cut and fasten it on 
with a narrow strip of cotton wound around and around ; 
slit the end of this bandage and tie it around the part. 
Leave the dressing undisturbed for two days, unless the 
blood stains through. Nature will soon heal the wound. 

Wrinkles. — i. While the skin retains tone and 
elasticity, wrinkles do not appear. The general health 
must be attended to and the skin must be given some 
local stimulation. Bathing the face with cold water, and 
then rubbing it briskly with a towel or palm of the hand, 
and then rubbing in some cold cream will do good 
service. Electricity, however, properly applied, is the 
best known method to dissipate wrinkles. 

2. An excellent cream to rub into the face every 
night is made of : Cocoa butter, one ounce ; white 
wax, one-half ounce ; spermaceti, one ounce ; sulphate of 
aluminum, one drachm ; rose-water, one ounce ; oil of 
sweet almonds, one ounce. 

3. Another wrinkle cream is : Spermaceti and 
white wax, each one-half ounce ; melt, and add to them, 
two ounces of oil of sweet almonds and one ounce each 



RECEIPTS AND REMEDIES 295 

of lanolin and cocoanut oil ; stir into this an ounce of 
orange flower water and ten drops of tincture of benzoin. 

4. For furrows on the forehead, try a compress of 
linen soaked in white of egg and alcohol mixed together ; 
leave on the forehead over night unless it smarts, then 
remove it or it will redden the skin. 

5. The Berlin remedy for wrinkles begins with 
steaming the face. Narrow strips of court plaster are 
then applied to the wrinkled portion, which is first 
stretched smoothly with thumb and forefinger. This is 
said to permanently cure wrinkles, but it must be 
persisted in for a long time before results are seen, and 
even then it must be done twice a week. 

Zinc. — I. Kerosene is one of the best things to use in 
cleaning zinc. Use a piece of soft cloth moistened 
with it and rub well. Where the spots are of long stand- 
ing use a little powdered bath brick with the kerosene. 

2. Zinc may also be nicely cleaned with ordinary 
sand or scouring soap. Rub some of the soap on a cloth 
and apply to the zinc ; rub briskly, and the zinc will 
soon be clean and bright. Wash with warm soap-suds 
and dry. 

3. Another way to clean zinc is to use sulphuric acid 
and water. Mix one ounce of acid into two ounces of 
water. Wash the zinc quickly with this mixture, rinse 
immediately with warm water, wipe dry, and polish with 
whiting. 



POPULAR HAND-BOOKS 




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THE PENN PUBLISHING COMPANY 
923 Arch Street, Philadelphia 



ETIQUETTE There is no passport to good: society 
By Agnes H. Morton like good manners. t| Even though one 
possess wealth and intelligence, his suc- 
cess in life may be marred by ignorance of social cu^oms. 
^ A perusal of this book will prevent such blunders. It is 
a book for everybody, for the social leaders as well as for 
those less ambitious. ^ The subjed is presented in a bright 
and intere^ing manner, and represents the late^ vogue. 

LETTER WRITING Why do mo^ persons dislike to 
By Agnes H. Morton write letters ? Is it not because 

they cannot say the right thing in 
the right place ? This admirable book not only shows by 
numerous examples just what kind of letters to write, but by 
direcftions and sugge^ions enables the reader to become an 
accomplished original letter writer. ^ There are forms for all 
kinds of business and social letters, including invitations, 
acceptances, letters of sympathy, congratulations, and love 
letters. 

QUOTATIONS A clever compilation of pithy quota- 
6y Agnes H. Morton tions, seleded from a great variety of 
sources, and alphabetically arranged 
according to the sentiment. ^ In addition to all the popular 
quotations in current use, it contains many rare bits of prose 
and verse not generally found in similar collections. €| One 
important feature of the book is found in the characterise 
lines from well known authors, in which the familiar sa3dngf 
are credited to their original sources. 

a 



EPITAPHS Even death h^s its humorous side. 

By Frederic W. Unger ^ There are said to be " sermons in 

^ones," but when they are tomb^ones 
there is many a smile mixed with the moral. ^ Usually 
churchyard humor is all the more delightful because it is 
unconscious, but there are times when it is intentional and 
none the less amusing. ^ Of epitaphs, old and new, this 
book contains the be^. It is full of quaint bits of obituary 
fancy, with a touch of the gruesome here and there for a 
relish. 

PI^OVEI^BS The genius, wit, and spirit of a nation 
By John H. Bechtel are discovered in its proverbs, and the 
condensed wisdom of all ages and all 
nations is embodied in them. ^ A good proverb that fits 
the case is often a convincing argument. ^ This volume 
contains a representative collection of proverbs, old and new, 
and the indexes, topical and alphabetical, enable one to find 
readily ju^ what he requires. 

THINGS WORTH Can you name the colde^ place in 

KNOWING the United States or tell what year 

By John H. Bechtel ^^ad 445 days? Do you know 

how soon the coal fields of the 
world are likely to be exhausted, or how the speed of a 
moving train may be told ? What should you do fir^ if 
you got a cinder in your eye, or your neighbor's baby swal- 
lowed a pin ? This unique, up-to-date book answers thoU" 
sands of jaSt such intere^ng and useful que^ons. 

3 



A DICTIONARY OF Mo^ of us disUke to look up a 

MYTHOLOGY m)rthologicaI subjedl because 

By John H. Bechtcl of the time required. ^ This 

book remedies that difficulty 
because in it can be found at a glance juSt what is wanted. 
^ It is comprehensive, convenient, condensed, and the infor- 
mation is presented in such an intere^ng manner that when 
once read it will always be remembered, ^ A di^ndlive 
feature of the book is the pronunciation of the proper names, 
something found in few other works, 

SLIPS OF SPEECH Who does not make them? 
By John H. Bcchtel The beft of us do. fl Why not 

avoid them ? Any one inspired 
with the spirit of self-improvement may readily do so. ^ No 
necessity for ^dying rules of grammar or rhetoric when this 
book may be had. It teaches both without the ^dy of 
either. C| It is a counsellor, a critic, a companion, and a 
guide, and is written in a most entertaining and chatty style. 

HANDBOOK OF What is more disagreeable 

PRONUNCIATION tl^an a faulty pronunciation? 

By John H. Bechtcl No other defed so clearly 

shows a lack of culture. ^ This 
book contains over 5,000 words on which mo^ of us are 
apt to trip. ^ They are here pronounced in the cleared and 
simple^ manner, and according to the beft authority ^ It 
is more readily consulted than a dictionary, and is juft at 
reliable* 



PRACTICAL A new word is a new tool. ^ This 

S Y N N YMS book will not only enlarge your vocabu- 
By John n. Bechtel l^ry, but will show you how to express 
the exadt shade of meaning you have 
in mind, and will cultivate a more precise habit of thought 
and speech. ^ It will be found invaluable to busy joumali^s, 
merchants, lawyers, or clergymen, and as an aid to teachers 
no less than to the boys and girls under their care. 



READY MADE SPEECHES Pretty much everybody 
By George Hapgood, Esq. in these latter days, is 

now and again called 
upon "to say a few words in public." ^ Unfortunately, 
however, but few of us are gifted with the power of ready 
and graceful speech. ^ This is a book of carefully planned 
model speeches to aid those who, without some slight help, 
mu^ remain silent, fl There is a preliminary chapter of gen- 
eral advice to speakers. 

AFTEI^-DINNER The dinner itself may be ever so 

STORIES good, and yet prove a failure if there 

By John Harrison ^s ^^ ^^^^ *o enliven the company. 

fl Nothing adds so much zest to an 
occasion of this kind as a good ^ory well told. ^ Here are 
hundreds of the late^, be^, brighter, and moft catchy ftories, 
all of them short and pithy, and so easy to remember that 
anyone can tell them successfully. ^ There are also a 
number of selected toails suitable to all occasions. 




MaSk wmsm. dead beag aMedwpam%o 
les p oad to a toaSt at to make an ad- 
dress, f Wh^woald TOO not give loc 
Ae JJljf to be nd g£ tins enbanassmait ? No deed to 
ffwcwmA'mhe^jaB. caMleana the ^t from das fade book. 
9 II -wM. tdl 3POH fafoir to do k ; irat aciy that, bat by ex- 
it wl ^loir ibe waj. ^ k is ^aloaUe Bot aloae to 
brt to ibe expeneBoed ^teako; wbo wH ^^Aa 



THE DEBATER'S Tbae is no ^eafer JAj than 

TREASLRY tbe power of sklU awl fordUe 

^VbFiito^ <l£*»»^ "i^l >» arrmyfehmprt 

move leadBf aoqaned 2 ihe peisoB 
B l i v ^ V^\f '^ '^ '^ 4 ^ *^ l*^ fukuL ase cfaedioos for 
CEg^KHg aad cxndadiDg dpbaiiis sodeiies aod prx'hcal 
sirxeff :-3 for dl wbo deske to discsss qara in ns m p^bfic 
€ T r t 5 akoafiftof ofer200q|KdiaBskrdebate,^iidi 



PUNCTL'ATiON Ft 

Dy Tirf AIbJjm toavaidHifiakesiHaBjdoDotpmdii^ 

aieatal. 4 Apemsal of d^ book 
and make al fumiti dear. ^ The 
and neerf Aiftated, dns liaiMMHg 
4 The Mil Ml is e«€iywbeie lecog- 
die leadbg mAaatyvptm d»e sabied. an^vthsai 
be bas to say is pcadicaLxcndse, and 

6 




ORATORY Few men ever enjoyed a wider e»- 

By Henr> Ward Beecho peneoce or atiatered a bicker RfHi- 

taiioQ B pobac ^fw^Mg maB Ml 
Beecber. ^ Wliat lie lad to say « Ais sabjea was bofM 
of e:q>eiieiioe, and bis omi ijHibUe dyle was at oBce boik 
sfcrffmrnr and fcftritoi cf bis AcMe. f This MiJiaiM is a 
mnqoe and imflul> treatke oa Ae faadaMeafal pmdples ol 
tme ocatocy. 



CONVERSATION Some pe<9fe 

By J. p. AU- too mDcb. Bal no one is 

taken to task ior taisg too wJ. 
fl Of aB t^.e acc:r:rl-jzt- J cf rsodefB societr. dial of 
being an a^~i: e ::i trs^ziiiij^ boUs find place;. 
Noddng is more deW^rfiJ or YThnblr f To saggeftwbat 
to saj, jaSt bow and when to say k, is tbe gcBeral ^b ol 
das won, and it succeeds 



READING The abfey to read alood yf^ 

AS A FINE ART wbetber at tbe kesick or oa die 

By Erxst Lt^oGsi pidific pbtfon, is a iae art. 

^ The cfcetftxaB awl saggejfaaas 
^•"■'fa'**^ in das woik of Samdard andioiiiy wH go br 

9 Tbe work is espedaly Rccaaneaded to tparbfff aid 
■dkos intoeded in die Mgnidinn of pidific scbool papds. 

7 



SOCIALISM Socialism is " in the air." fl References 
By Charles H. Olin to the subjedt are con^antly appearing 
in newspapers, magazines, and other 
publications. ^ But few persons except the sociali^s them- 
selves have more than a dim comprehension of what it really 
means, fl This book gives in a clear and intere^ing manner 
a complete idea of the economic dodtrines taught by the beil 
sociali^. 

JOURNALISM What is news, how is it obtained, how 
By Charles H. Olln handled, and how can one become a 
Joumali^? ^ These que^ons are all 
answered in this book, and detailed in^rudions are given for 
obtaining a position and writing up all kinds of "assign- 
ments.** ^ It shows what to avoid and what to cultivate, 
and contains chapters on book reviewing, dramatic criticism 
and proofreading. 

VENTRILOQUISM Although always a delightful form 
By Charles H. Olln of entertainment, Ventriloquism is 

to mo^ of us more or less of a 
my^eiy fl It need be so no longer. ^ This book exposes 
the secrets of the art completely, and shows how almo^ 
anyone may learn to " throw the voice '* both near and far. 
^ Diredions for the con^udion of automatons are given 
as well as good dialogue for their successful operation. 
^ Fully illu^ated. 



APR 28 1908 



